The Star Pathfinder and the Future Dragon
by ParrllelPenSW
Summary: Reincarnation in a world based on a TCG was bizarre to experience after dying in a terrorist attack. More so, when the Crimson Dragon partnered me with a dragon that never belonged in 5D's, Clear Wing Synchro Dragon. My existence was already changing the status quo. So, I might as well reach the Signers earlier if I had to; Z-ONE wasn't the only one going to shape the future. SI-OC
1. A Call to Action

**The Star Pathfinder and the Future Dragon**

 **Summary:** Reincarnation in a world based on a TCG was bizarre to experience after dying in a terrorist attack. More so, when the Crimson Dragon partnered me with a dragon never belonged in 5D's, Clear Wing Synchro Dragon. My existence was already changing the status quo. So, I might as well reach the Signers earlier if I had to; Z-ONE wasn't the only one going to shape the future. [SI-OC]

 **AU Notes:** Heya readers! ParallelPenSW here! While this account is new, I actually have another account that I write on (which penname I will not mention here), but due to demands (when hundreds of people are following you... you get the gist) and a hefty writer's block on that account, I wanted to write this because... plot bunnies. Yeah, the crazy kind that wouldn't leave you alone. I just... needed a break from my other account. Basically, I haven't written a fanfic in a while, so I'm pretty amazed this came out the way it did.

 **Deals with:** Reincarnation, a duelist who's just gotten back into the YGO TCG after a long while but got chosen, and the Crimson Dragon meddling with time because said chosen person has foreknowledge but said Dragon would rather not have Z-One have his way. Pairings are up in the air.

Hope you enjoy!

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 **Chapter 1: A Call to Action**

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 _"History is a relentless master._

 _It has no present, only the past rushing into the future._

 _To try to hold fast is to be swept aside."_

 _\- John F. Kennedy_

* * *

My current name is Aria Hughes. While my past name in a different life is/was just as important, I'd rather not say. Just say that after I died, I accepted I was never coming back to the life I had before. I had to keep on moving forward, for those that I loved in the past and for myself. It's hard to explain it without getting emotional or tearing up. But all I can say is that in my past life, I had finally got to the point where things I worked hard for paid off.

Let me tell you my relationship with Duel Monsters for starters.

In a country where regionals/locals or Trading Card Games (TCGs) competitions were barely held like they had in the US or Japan, the Yu-Gi-Oh fanbase where I lived was geared towards the anime. As a girl who held an interest in TCGs was odd in itself, I had followed the series till 5D's, but I fell out of the fandom to focus on my school studies and other things took my attention. While I love the intricacies of the gameplay that was YGO, I just didn't see it as something I wanted to spend excessive money on. My parents in my past life were already spending on other things such as my musical education along with the instrument that I played with, that I didn't have the heart to spend their money on a card game.

The only deck I ever owned as a kid was a Yugi Starter Deck, and that was a fake print. Pretty depressing, honestly. Well, at least as a Yu-Gi-Oh fan. I bet Yami Yugi was rolling in his grave. Especially when I remembered an episode about the Exodia Deck with fake prints in the Duel Monsters anime and how that was frowned upon.

To get by, the only time I did play was on video game ROMs; but it was lackluster at best with an AI as an opponent.

It wasn't till I graduated college and got a stable first job that an old-time punk rock fashion nerd friend, Tessa, had invited me to one of her local card shop hangouts where her circle of friends who were playing the game with the current up-to-date format. They were very kind enough let me borrow their decks and (very) patiently taught me the current rules and crazy new summoning methods that were created such as XYZ Summoning, Pendulum Summoning, and even the new Link summoning. It was scary and overwhelming at first, but I learned, improved, and had fun.

The community there was a blessing for me.

With that reintroduction to the game, I was back in full swing catching up on the anime I've missed and found new friends in that TCG community. It was entertaining and touching when they managed their time to binge-watch with me through Zexal, Arc-V, and even start on Vrains. They came by the card shop usually to play and see my reaction towards the anime, even though they saw the plot of the story coming from a mile away having already seen them. For those who had the chance to keep following the anime and TCG from the start, they found my reactions amusing and interesting.

Soon, the card shop felt like a third home to me. While most people would call you out on playing with proxy cards (fakes), in Tessa's (and now my new) community of friends, they understood that having and even buying original cards were a luxury. Not everyone could afford a competitive deck and only a few of us ever had the chance to join an official competition. The money conversion to buy original cards to our currency was hardly in our favor to the point that even buying Common rarity cards were considered pricey. The prices got absurd the higher the rarity went. I guess our group was just focused on having fun, whether it was just discussing what was happening in the metagame, having casual duels, and making weird themed decks.

To tell you the truth, by the time I finished the Arc-V anime and started on VRAINS, I hadn't had a deck to call my own. The cards that I used were the proxy cards that were stored at the card shop. It was there so you could have a "feel" for the deck/archetype before going/searching for the real cards and buy them. With the current format, there were so many things for me to choose from, and I liked a lot of things that were available. However, I did like fusion summoning and mostly Synchro summoning the most. Fusions mostly was now a lot more fun than in the GX era as they had more supports (you didn't to always play Polymerization) and deck archetypes available. As for Synchros, I guess 5D's anime nostalgia was responsible for that, but I couldn't see myself having my main boss monster from any of the Signer Dragons. XYZ, Pendulum, and Link summoning were fun to play too, but I liked playing them as part of the Extra Deck and side deck if anything.

It was Tessa, who uncannily with a sixth-like sense had called me over to her house one day said she was unboxing a deck pack. In the mail, she had finally received her Legendary Dragon Decks pack she bought online and from abroad. As her best friend, she wanted me to share that moment with her and I helped her do an unboxing video with her camera. We did a couple of takes and I was mostly in charge of making sure that the camera's focus wasn't blurry and setting it up from different angles. By the end of it, I was drawn to one particular card: Clear Wing Synchro Dragon in its alternate artwork.

"Do you like it?" She asked.

I nodded and smiled as I pointed to the card, "I like its artwork better than the normal version. I just never liked the lightning effects on that one. Here, it's like it's going to soar and pop out of the card from among the stars."

Tessa smiled knowingly back, "Then Clear Wing is now yours."

I gaped and put the card back into her pile. "What?! No way, it's an Ultra Rare! I couldn't possibly–"

"I'm insisting," She said, putting the dragon into a card sleeve and giving it to me, "It's as a thank you for giving me a lift on your motorcycle to god knows how many anime cons we've been to."

"Those anime cons were mostly for my music concert groups," I reasoned, still not accepting the card.

She chuckled, "And I happen to enjoy them too! It's not every day I get to brag my best friend is on stage playing with a whole group of other musicians for the love of anime and video games music! You should play your violin more often–like an electric violin, but that's my opinion."

I snorted. "A bit much on the flattery?" I was still saving up for that electric violin though.

"More like you're far too modest, lady," she quipped back amused. "Besides, I already have two Secret Rares of Clear Wing. This one is an ultra rare. Even if it's a different artwork, I don't usually play Synchros, I play Gem-Knights and decks with Pendulum monsters more often. The rest is mostly for nostalgia and collecting, but I'm hardly the crazy collector."

"Is it… really, okay?"

Tessa looked at me weirdly, "Do you have any problems with its monster effect?"

"No," I replied.

Heck, I had to say for a level 7 synchro monster it was powerful. Yugo/Hugo was a likable funny character at best, but I did like Clear Wing Synchro Dragon when it made its appearance in the Arc-V anime like the other Dimension Dragons. In general, I always did like dragon artwork no matter what fandom it belonged to. I just never imagined that I sort of gravitated towards a card like this before.

She persisted and shoved the card in my face, "Then Clear Wing goes with you. Call it a gut feeling. I've seen you at card pack openings with the others and none of their Synchro monsters attracted your attention like this one. I just think it's the card for you."

There was a five minute of awkward silence before she shoved it in my hand for real and swiped her deck box so I hadn't had the chance to return it to her.

"Tessa–"

"Trust me on this," Tessa waved a finger at me. "Next Saturday, when we do your first booster pack opening, maybe you'll attract the right cards. You seriously have a mean lucky gacha streak, you know?"

Tessa wasn't entirely wrong when it came to me and pulling out lucky draws. Even my mother had commented at times during my life I had a lucky hand in raffles. There was that one time in a raffle when I was seven I pulled a two plane tickets trip to Bali. Another story, was when I entered a raffle for my grandmother during junior high school and I won her an electric mixer. Even the others at the card shop would ask me to pull their gacha/randomized character mobile games as I was known to pull SSRs if I was really lucky.

I sighed and relented. "Fine, I'll fully accept it on the condition that I'll pull something that supports Clear Wing in my first booster pack on Saturday. If I don't, I'm returning this to you."

"Challenge accepted!"

Long story short, fast forward to Saturday and I chose a random "Battles of Legend: Light's Revenge" booster pack as my first opening. Tessa being the annoyingly sweet friend she was, told everyone at the card shop of our deal, which ended with the whole gang getting together to 'celebrate' my first original booster pack opening. I'm pretty serious it was a first for me in opening an official non-fake booster pack. The exaggeration and joking were ridiculous, but it would later be one of my most precious memories of the past. Our shopkeeper, Christian, was even recording a video through his phone as I opened it carefully, commemorating my first booster pack opening.

As I shifted through the 5 card pack I had gotten a Common Synchro Soldier, a Common Synchro Strike (Trap), a Rare Anti-Spell Fragrance (Spell), a Common Transmodify, and…

A _Secret Rare_ Crystal Wing Synchro Dragon.

 _My gaping mouth was forever recorded in Christian's video._

The room exploded with cheers, laughter (mostly at me for my absurd luck), and Tessa, being my best friend, cackled as she shouted, "I told you so! See? Crystal Wing definitely supports Clear Wing!"

In the end, I laughed with everyone else and help the others randomly pick out packs and hopefully the luck would spread to them. From a couple of pack openings, while none were Secret Rares, they did manage to get some cards that were pricey for the current meta to be resold or used in their decks. Tessa grinned widely and declared that I was permanently Clear Wing's owner. In turn, I admitted defeat that maybe the dragon of the Synchro dimension was the card for me.

From that day on, Clear Wing Synchro Dragon and Crystal Wing Synchro Dragon became part of my deck.

What I didn't realize, my current happiness wasn't going to last for long.

 **.**

 **.**

* * *

Dying, was an agonizing and thankfully short experience for me.

The day I died was during a concert that my instrument group was playing for an event held by joint events of embassies that promoted culture and world peace. The diplomatic event mainly had people dressed in traditional garbs representing their country and musicians of different backgrounds coming in to play music. My friends from the card shop had attended it and my parents along with my sibling were there too expecting to enjoy music from around the globe. They were there to support me.

I had just finished performing a duet and was in the process of packing up backstage when it happened.

The first explosion shook the area.

Screams echoed through the venue, people were running.

The second one was larger.

I had my violin strapped to my back and a side bag that stored my wallet and deck. I was supposed to eat lunch with my family and then join my friends later at the card shop. I ran towards the back exit in hopes I could evacuate the area.

However, that was where the third suicidal bomber was. They were aiming for a VIP that was exiting the area through the same gate.

The third explosion sealed my fate.

At first, all I registered was blinding pain. Then, everything felt numb. A tang of salt overflowed my lips and a pool of blood formed where I laid. I was sobbing, whimpering, my body was shutting down, and my vision started to fade. I didn't want to die, not when I was enjoying the life I finally built with years of hard work. There were so many things I wanted to do with my life.

What I saw in peripheral vision was my broken violin case, side bag destroyed, and my cards in disarray. Ironically, the Clear Wing Synchro Dragon card was the last thing I saw before I closed my eyes forever in my first life.

I never got to say goodbye to my loved ones.

The life that I hoped to live to the fullest was cut short in a snap of a finger.

 **.**

 **.**

* * *

The afterlife, unfortunately, wasn't as short and only lead to infinite questions.

My spirit wandered in empty white space. Time was distorted.

How long have I been here?

Hours, days, weeks, or years perhaps?

My sense of time was warped, and that may be a good thing. The first time I was here I was a sobbing mess, exceedingly guilty and blaming myself for my death. Being by myself with too much time meant I was alone with my demons. Those questions haunted me… Why me? Why wasn't I smarter? Why didn't I escape with my life intact? Were my family and friends okay? Are they having my funeral? Did I cause them so much pain by dying and leaving them behind? And yet, even then, I reached a certain limit I had enough of pitying my current circumstances, swallowed my fears, and sought for answers.

Sometime in my current situation, I had noticed in the expanse space that was all white there was solid ground. So I walked and walked. It was surreal really when no matter how much I walked I didn't get tired. I never got hungry or thirsty. It proved that I didn't have a physical body anymore.

Even though it was a simple action, it took my mind off of things I had no answers to. At times I would go into a full sprint when I was frustrated but then would walk again. All I held was faith and hope that I was moving forward. I wasn't sure where I was going, but as long as I moved, it didn't let me tangle with unpleasant thoughts.

An indefinite period of time passed.

Depressingly, my mind was on auto-pilot as I kept on moving forward. I realized that if I looked back, I would stop and break down. That risk wasn't something I wanted. Now desperate and extremely lonely, I started to imagine that there was the end of the road somewhere in front of me. It was the last attempt of my mind from breaking that there had to be something I was walking towards to, a hope that there was a future.

Miraculously, my plea was answered.

In the form of a familiar celestial red being which I recognized was the Crimson Dragon.

If that wasn't crazy enough, another dragon was hovering behind me, Clear Wing Synchro Dragon.

If Clear Wing was huge that I could stand in its hand and I still would have space to lie down and roll around without worrying I'd fall, the Crimson Dragon was humongous – like Smaug the Dragon from the Hobbit films humongous. My height was an accurate measurement of how big its eye was. Honestly, the anime did not do it any justice. A normal human should have been frightened of it, but after for being alone for a long time, my tears fell down my cheeks in relief. I wept.

My psyche was already a mess. I didn't care if then and there I would have to disappear. My mind was happy enough that even if I did disperse into particles, I didn't go alone. The timeless journey that led me here at least was worth it.

 ** _~( No need for sorrow, Pathfinder. You've been found. )~_**

I blinked at the Crimson Dragon, surprised at its dual voice or both female and male at the same time. "Pathfinder?" I hiccuped, trying miserably to wipe my tears away.

In turn, a glowing mark glowed of the whole body of the Crimson snaked on my right arm. It wasn't the one I was familiar with from the anime where the mark was circular. The head mark was pointing to my wrist as its body was styled into a reversed 'S' shape, wings were on top of one of the curves, and the positions on where the claws were where I expected them to be. Nevertheless, what shocked me was that the Heart Mark was present in the front claw and unlike the other Signers, it was glowing white. Why was the Heart Mark there? Didn't Lua manifest his Mark far later in the last season? And why was my mark glowing white and not red like the other Signers?

A soft voice. **_~( Z-ONE has moved far too soon. Counter him. )~_**

What? Did the Crimson Dragon just say he wants me to counter Z-ONE? The big bad in 5D's? How was I supposed to do that? A 'Pathfinder' never existed in 5D's.

Suddenly there was a sorrowful howl from the red deity. _**~( The past Pathfinder was killed by the Earthbound Immortals before they truly ascended to their role. And so had their intended dragon. )~**_

When the deity explained that, my mind was filled with visions. The same vision from the anime, on how the previous war of five Signers and their dragons that ended with Ancient Fairy dragon taken hostage by Earthbound Immortal Uru before it was sealed. However, there was a flashback further in time before that. A priestess on her knees in a prayer, behind her a dragon which was only just taking the form of a white silhouette, which I recognized was supposed to be Clear Wing Synchro Dragon.

 ** _~( Their side had also created an adversary to counter us. )~_**

Black slithering roots attacked the priestess and the newly formed dragon, tragically ending both lives. In anger and sadness, the past Signers along with their dragons had fought back and the being that was a counter-balance on the Earthbound Immortals' side to the Pathfinder was destroyed.

 _ **~( The Pathfinder was supposed to further support the Signers; open the gate to miracles, so the Signers would grow and evolve. Yet, it was 5000 years too soon. Without their guidance, we lost Ancient Fairy Dragon to the Earthbound Immortals. )~**_

I was silent as I processed the information I was given. It still bothered me how I was here. "Am I the right person for this? I… I don't mean it in a bad way, there could have been others that you could have chosen from who might be better duelists."

 _ **~( The Pathfinder isn't the strongest in a fight, but the one that perseveres to reach out to all the Signers and awaken their full potential. You are aware of different timelines and dragon forms? )~**_

I paused as I recalled the manga variations of the Signer Dragons. "You mean like Stardust Spark Dragon, Hot Red Dragon Archfiend, Black Rose Moonlight Dragon?"

 _ **~( And where Z-ONE comes from, Fudo Yusei's Stardust Dragon evolved to Cosmic Blazar Dragon. From the timeline that was changed according to your knowledge, Stardust achieved a higher form instead. Nonetheless, given the circumstances, all Signers could ascend their potential fully. )~**_

Call me a fool, but I still didn't think I was that worthy of person to what the Crimson Dragon was hinting at. It was just still all too raw after being lost for so long that when I found something in this vast emptiness.

 _ **~( You have a chance to fully grow this time from the one you were robbed of, Pathfinder. Another chance, a future. )~**_ it reminded me gently.

The chance for reincarnation was tempting, but with reincarnation, there was a drawback. "Will I... forget my past life?"

 ** _~( You will remember it well, as your foreknowledge and information on the other dragon forms will turn the tide. Your circumstances will not begin well, but know that all efforts will always be rewarded. With your existence, new duel monster spirits will emerge helping you along the way. )~_**

Taking note of the Crimson Dragon's warning that I wouldn't start off well was terrifying, but I had the chance to start over. To live. With this reincarnation, I wouldn't forget the precious people I've met before or experiences I had with them. I was on a journey to make new ones too.

"I… I want to live again," I said resolutely. "And yet… how is Clear Wing Synchro Dragon here with me? I thought that Clear Wing belongs to another timeline or universe entirely."

 _ **~( That is true. And yet what does Clear Wing Synchro Dragon represent? )~**_

"Synchro monsters," I answered in realization. Its name was quite literal. It made sense that it would be the thing that the Four Stars of Destruction (the antagonists of 5D's) wanted to eliminate.

 _ **~( Other previous forms of summoning do exist as well. The Future Dragon had always been your supposed partner. She will be with you along your way. )~**_

"Eh?! She?" I raised an eyebrow and looked at my Dragon. I was quite sure that its different form was Supreme King Dragon Clear Wing.

My hair was treated to a short burst of wind when Clear Wing snorted at me.

Then again, maybe not.

 _ **~( You're a catalyst in change, Pathfinder. Now, go. LIVE. )~**_

 _ **.**_

 _ **.**_

* * *

As soon as the Crimson Dragon said 'live', it was like the lights were switched off, but then a light came and I was immediately crying out loud wailing, noticing that my hands were far smaller than I remembered. My movements were restricted, and my eyesight limited.

I was a baby.

I won't bore you with the facts of the uncomfortable first months of infant life, but just say despite it, I had a full loving family. From the conversations from what I heard as a baby, I picked up facts about my family.

First of all, my dad's name was Brian Hughes and he was a Broadway-like performer from the Tops. As for my mother, Tiffany Hughes was a Satellite born musician. They had married young and founded the 'Starlight Theater' together which hosted musicals, magic shows, any sort of theatrical show you could name it. Now, when I said 'married young' that would also point out to the fact that I had four older siblings. Albert was the eldest at seven, followed by Eugene at five, Erika at four, Russel at three, and I was a few months old. With five kids around the place where we lived, it was always full of life. Not to mention that many of Dad's and mom's friends from the Starlight Theater would drop by our house and bring their own kids so they could play with us.

It was a family I dreamed of having in a past life that could eventually support me in my musical passion in the future. As for Dueling… it was up in the air for that. While I had caught my eldest brother playing the card game, I had no idea if my parents really dueled at all. However, if I was going to change things, I was planning to Turbo Duel. I wanted to connect with the main 5D's trio earlier was fascinated by the idea that with Turbo Dueling that you could 'Sense' the feelings of the duelist you were fighting. You know, the kind of the things they preached in most Shonen manga/anime about when you clash in battle, you understand your opponent. I did own a motorcycle in my past life to go to work, so you could see why I was curious.

Now, since I was too busy planning ahead at the time, I had forgotten that mom was Satellite born and there weren't any talks how it was a separated island completely yet.

The conclusion: that Zero Reverse was on its way and it wasn't on my mind until the day it happened.

Honestly, I don't remember what happened on the day the incident broke out. All I knew was that I passed out being held in Dad's arms from agonizing pain with no idea what occurred at all. I woke up in a hospital a few days later hurting, but alive. That time frame was a blur to me as I went in and out of consciousness. My health was getting worse that I was moved out of the country to a doctor my Dad had the chance of knowing.

When I came to, I overheard my father looking grave as if life sucked out of him. Gone was the large goofy grin and all was left was a shell of a man with a smile that I could even see he was trying hard avoid cracking. He was acting that everything was okay when things hardly were. I kept listening as I put together the clues.

 _"Your sons need mental help."_

 _"...numerous operations."_

 _"...She'll have a tough life ahead of her."_

 _"I'm sorry for your loss."_

To put it bluntly, my family was ripped apart by the Zero Reverse. My Mom and elder sister, Erika, tragically died in the incident. My brothers were psychologically traumatized. Dad had lost all of the members of the Starlight Theater who had been a family to him too. We were fortunate enough to escape, get out of Satellite when we did, and now we're out of Neo Domino City. It got worse when I was fully aware of my situation…

Due to severe injury during the Zero Reverse, my left leg was infected severely and I received help far too late.

To save my life, I had gone through operations that I don't recall at all.

I was now an amputee.

How was I going to help the Crimson Dragon change the timeline like this?

.

.

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 _ **To be Continued…**_

 _ **.**_

 _ **.**_

 _ **AU Notes:** _And that folks, is our intro to our main protag, an amputee. I have a knack to go create stories I want to challenge myself or try something that hasn't been done in a particular fandom. If I get enough feedback, the next chapter should be up by tomorrow (I'm just doing the proof reading for later). I'm not following any of the Stardust Acceleration/Reverse of Arcadia or the Tag Force games. Some things will diverge from canon while others will remain the same.

 _ **Add. Note:**_ Aria's Dragon Mark is the one on the cover that I made. Yep, I made it from scratch by taking the original mark and making a variation of it. So it's my pic and I haven't taken it from anyone else. Just a heads up.

Thanks for reading! Don't hesitate to drop a review, favorite, or follow, and have an amazing day!


	2. Where and When to Start

**The Star Pathfinder and the Future Dragon**

 **AU Notes:** Eh, not bad of 70 views, 1 fav and 5 follows in a small fandom honestly. =) Well, it's the weekend. Might as well make someone's day.

 **My thanks for: Aevant, jcollet2000, and shadanai2538 for the follows.**

 **Thank you, SoraMythos9276, for the fav and follow.**

 **Also thanks to Hashirama 1710 for dropping by to review and follow this fic!**

And we have chapter II (as promised)! More world building!

Hope you enjoy!

.

.

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 **Chapter 2: Where and When to Start**

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 _"Start where you are._

 _Use what you have._

 _Do what you can."_

 _\- Arthur Ashe_

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Having an adult mind with an infant body that was missing a limb that the adult had in their past life was probably a bad idea. You see, when I was permitted to start moving around and wanted to crawl, I missed my own physical left leg horribly. It was a dispiriting notion since I was overthinking things to the point where the emotions would build my frustrations and I would end up on the verge of crying. Infant me in this life was a total crybaby, which I realized that my current body couldn't deal with the emotions of an adult mind. Especially when all I remembered was a life where I had a leg. It was hard not to think when it was the only thing I could do other than interact with my heart stricken family.

It made me feel worse when I cried I made my dad and brothers worry.

When I mentioned previously that I was moved to a hospital abroad, our family ended up in Hawaii, America. Since I was admitted to a process of long recovery at the hospital due to my frail health that had to do with my amputation, my dad had decided to stay here than go back to Neo Domino City. He just didn't have the heart to, not when there were no bodies of his wife and daughter to bury. Despite that my dad was a burly man, he was one hell of a softy. I had assumed that after my mother and sister passed away, I was the last member of the family that had the most traits of my mother. Where his dark brown hair (and beard) that jutted in places that reminded me of Logan from the X-Men with green eyes, I had my mother's honey blond hair, pale skin, and her sky blue eyes.

As for my brothers… Albert had all the features of my father but had my mother's eyes. Eugene was pretty much a carbon copy of my dad period, and Russel had a crazy mix which clearly marked him as someone who lived in the universe of duel monsters with green eyes. You know, kind of like how Yuya had tomato red and green hair or pretty much the majority of characters you would see in Zexal or Arc-V. Only, Russel's hair was a mix of dark brown and blond. Genetics was weird that way in this world to the point I didn't question it anymore.

All in all, since Mom and Erika died, my dad and brothers were very protective of me. Understandably so, since the first four months in a hospital of me being an amputee was a wake-up call for all of them. I had noticed that Albert had taken his big brother role more seriously than a 7-year-old should. When my dad wasn't around, he was the one carrying me around everywhere. Eugene and Russel mostly mimicked my oldest brother, but more that they also wanted his attention because dad had to toil with his profession to support his four children. It eroded my heart every single time that he was working around the clock to pay medical bills that my condition was responsible for, and yet still made an effort to see his kids at least once in a day. However, considering our circumstances, we were well off than most of what the people of Satellite were suffering from.

At least my brothers had the chance to go to school and be normal kids even if they went through horrific events. Even the school here had counseling. By that comparison, it hit me hard in the feels what Jack, Yusei, and Crow had to deal with. Even though my father was a single parent, he had connections and prepared well than most before he had kids, being someone who grew up in the Tops. Dad mentioned that his parents ingrained their children with knowledge to manage their money before letting them go to chose their own jobs or whatever they wanted to pursue.

It was another reason why Dad was a frugal spender and was also passing that knowledge to his own kids.

I never saw someone haggle prices like Dad did. Even my past life mother was good and she didn't hold a candle to my current dad. I guess it ran in the family?

From what I knew about my grandparents from my father's side, they were alive and well, but Dad only had mentioned they dealt with a property business somewhere in Europe. They did visit initially during the first two months the Zero Reverse hit, but I was so out of it that my health was directly responsible that I never got to see their faces. It wasn't they didn't care about us, but Dad was stubborn that he was capable of handling his own financial situation and also move on. It was also how he was raised on how he was the most unlikely person to inherit any sort of fortune from my grandparents seeing he was the youngest out of seven children.

I had yet to meet the rest of Dad's side of my family due to my condition.

It wasn't until I was two and a half years old that I was fully declared that I could freely go without the monitoring of doctors. My father and brothers were elated that I was healthy, despite my current handicap. At two and soon turning three, my current age was a turning point. You see, all of this time I've lived in this new life, I had been observing my family in order to get an idea where I wanted to go in my life this time around.

Despite his family had been torn, Brian Hughes, the man who was now my father, had chosen to keep being a performer. Dad sang, he danced, acted, was part of magic/musical shows, played the piano, and he connected to new people even if the mental scars from the Zero Reverse were still there. He gave his two hundred percent in all his shows and as a family, we were always watching him in the crowd. It was clear he wanted to let his children know that even if our family was never the same again, he was going to his best to live and make things count. He was amazingly multi-talented on stage despite being a horrible cook at home. So, yeah, being from the Tops contributed to that. Mom was the cook of the family, who was in the process of teaching her skill to Erika. But when they both passed away… Dad now relied on our neighbors who could cook for him for a fee.

Moving on.

At seven years old, Eugene had taken to learn Dad's profession of an entertainer like a house on fire. He was frequently seen in musical rehearsals and plays of Dad's workplace. He was adamant that if anyone would take over the family legacy, it was him. He thrived on the stage. Dad's friends were already tutoring him and he had mentors. And every time Dad was on stage, he was taking notes. Truthfully, the reason why he thought he was the best candidate was that my eldest brother's talent laid elsewhere. I'll get to that later.

At five years old, Russel was obsessed with photos. From what I heard, during the evacuation from Satellite, he held onto the last physical photo along with its data chip (stuck to the back of the frame) of our family before it was ripped apart. Even I had to admit that was rough for a three-year-old. It was thanks to one of Dad's friends who introduced him to an instant camera that I think he realized that a picture had preserved that precious moment we had as a family together. From then on, the small cheap instant camera was like a safety blanket for him. Unlike Eugene and Albert, though, thankfully his childlike side was there. It came to show that he only remembered losing my mother and sister but was blissfully unaware of everything else such as the overall consequences of the Zero Reverse.

As for Albert… holy cow, my elder brother was amazing. While I do believe that all kids deserve a childhood, he took his older brother role overboard. And since I was living in a world that was of duel monsters, I think you could see the pattern of how older siblings of every Yu-Gi-Oh! season who goes above and beyond for their younger siblings. The family genius took his school grades by storm. More importantly, he was admitted into Hawaii's Duel Academy on full scholarship at nine years old. In the world I've lived before, while prodigies existed, the YGO universe was a place where teens could be head of multi-national corporations or part of one in their young age. I should have expected it.

Seeing the real deal with your own eyes is something else.

In fact, he was the one who was responsible for helping me start on reading and writing early. Those hours in a hospital had to go somewhere. If I had to guess, he was was observant enough I was bored of picture storybooks and started lending me comic books instead. The comic books were still for kids–amusingly enough about Kaibaman of all superheroes that existed in this world–but not something a 3-year-old could read. Albert was also responsible for bringing me a sketchbook which I ended up practicing my writing with words I encountered in comic books than drawing anything to get my hand motoric skills back up to par. Like a proud big brother he was, he had taken my sketchbook and showed it to Dad I was 'a natural' like him.

Dad was proud that his daughter was most likely another 'genius' in the family, but I noticed his eyes looked torn every time his gaze would shift to where my left leg should be.

I still hadn't gotten used to that pitying look. I made a mental note I had to deal with it somehow.

In a nutshell, I was at a cross-section on whether I would choose to stand out, go all out, or I would hide my intellect till it was time for me to meet the other Signers.

On a particular day, Albert had made the time in his busy 'genius' school schedule (Duel school with optimal study times) to push me in a wheelchair—that was still too big for a now three-year-old like me—on a pathway at the side of the beach. Dad wasn't too far away with Eugene and Russel in a line at a food truck ordering food for what was my birthday. My brother then asked the same question I had been asking myself since I was reborn in this new world.

"Is there anything you would like to do?" he asked lightly. Although, I was certain he was indirectly asking what I wanted to be when I grew up.

"I wanna play the violin, but I wanna do lots of stuff," I said in a childish tone as possible. Keeping up the vocabulary to a child's level was a lot tiring than it looked.

"Like Mom?"

I nodded.

Even though Mom was Satellite born, my grandparents on her side of the family moved a lot. They had eventually settled in this world's Seoul, South Korea with things they had from their travels. Still, I didn't know until I was out of the hospital that both my grandparents and my uncle, who never married and I only I knew named Timothy, had visited us in Satellite during the Zero Reverse. Hearing that my mother's side of the family had also perished in the incident was heart-breaking. My respect for Dad for moving on was tenfold than it was before. I swore on that day I'll hug him every chance I got when he looked sad.

Historical fact: Satellite being a 'poor sector' of Neo Domino City only happened after the Zero Reverse. Before that, it was a suburban sector that was nearer to the sea. The area was a place where urban planning deemed it as a place to start new families. Hence why the Old Momentum was built there in the first place, its function was to generate energy to households in the area and eventually to other parts of Neo Domino City. It made me disgusted on what Rex Goodwin along with Iliaster did to it.

Still, all of my Mother's childhood things, as well as the house, were still in Seoul. With me out of the hospital, Dad had was planning a trip there to get all of it sorted out. For the last two years, a home caretaker took care of the house. However, with no one living there, my father thought it was for the best to put it up for rent so he could have extra income but keep the building that was once owned by Mom's family. Other than Albert, I had expressed to Dad I wanted to play the violin during the first time he took all of us to a family cafe with live music where there a violinist played there. Dad had told me he would try to bring Mom's violin that she had as a child among the items that were stored in that house.

Albert seemed happy that I was keeping something part of Mom alive. He then suggested, "How about play the piano like Erika?"

I shrugged, "I could try it out."

Knowing all there is to know about the violin, I could speed up the process of finding the best tone quality. All was left to brush up on muscle memory, get my stamina up so I can play the violin for a long duration of time, and get used to reading notes when I need to. The piano, on the other hand, was something I never truly pursued back then. I knew how to play very simple songs along with the chords, but I never got to the part of playing at advanced piano level. Yet, this was another life, right? I might as well branch out, even if it wouldn't be my strongest suit. I wasn't sure what level my sister in this life reached when she was alive though. There was another reason why I didn't continue playing the piano back then in another life. It was because getting one instrument wasn't cheap and I didn't want to burden my parents on two instruments to get instead of one; pianos especially weren't something I want to burden them with. Here, with my dad being a performer, even if we couldn't have one, all I needed was access to the music studios.

"Then you should," He smiled back interrupting my thoughts. "No one said you can't. But you have to work hard to be the best."

I replied to him with a nod preferring to just see how things would play out. Albert had that faraway look as he gazed towards the sea.

"Albert?"

"Hmm? Yes, Aria?"

"Why do you duel?" I questioned. Honestly, I was curious what made his genius 9-year-old tick.

Surprisingly, his face turned serious. "I _want_ to help Dad. I _want_ to help all of us. Nearly everything we do has to do with dueling, you know?"

I leaned my face to side in question, "Nearly everything?"

Albert inclined his head. "Yeah. You know when they tested me in school the better duelist you are with the right grades, you can get better teachers? Also, Dad said he had to show he was worth joining the new theater group where he works at now through a duel after he showed them what a great performer he was. Everyone thought he was awesome because he defeated the owner!"

"Dad has a deck?"

It was a stupid question for a world that revolved in a trading card game, but how was _I_ not aware of this?!

Was I not observant enough?

Albert laughed at me, which caused my face to heat up in embarrassment. "You don't have to be ashamed that you don't know, Aria. He doesn't duel in front of us because most of it was on 'adult matters'. The only reason why I know is that I was there to watch after I said I was going to try to attend the Hawaii Duel Academy. He wanted to show me what a real duel was like before I took the entrance test."

That must be pretty recent then. If my elder brother was being literal, then that sucked being the kid that never really understood about dueling or just didn't bother to. What was worse, that meant dueling was so ingrained in society that without it, you'd be deprived of opportunities that would otherwise be fair game. It seemed that the entertainment industry wasn't as affected by performance quality and communication to your audience as the most important things. Yet, my Dad was living proof that he could earn more since other than his extensive his Broadway talents, he showed talent as a great duelist.

It was then and there this reality hit me. Dueling was a _worldwide ethical culture_ here. No wonder Paradox went batshit insane as he tried to kill Pegasus and Z-ONE made it his mission for mass genocide. There was a time when people got by without dueling when in the past it was a pastime hobby… well not in all cultures like now at least, if you factor in the ancient civilizations that had connections with Duel Monster spirits. Nevertheless, it just shows you how life was far simpler back then when dueling wasn't something considered as a mandatory skill set to survive.

"Aria? You're spacing out." Albert waved his hand in front of me.

"Oh?"

Albert was observing me curiously. "You know, as long as you can read, understand the cards, and count life points you can play duel monsters. You're already a better reader than Eugene and Russel."

I winced at his blatant description of how I was probably a bad actor on how smart I was compared to my two other brothers who were older than me. It's a lot harder being a kid when I haven't been one in a long time. I was a very quiet child too, at least for someone that's three years old. Then again, I tended to like observing first before stating my opinions.

"I… I just don't want them to be jealous," I admitted a half-truth. Siblings usually tended to be jealous when they're young. It wasn't a foreign concept when sibling rivalry was something I experienced in the past too. With my leg the way it was, I was reluctant to pry any sort of attention that my brothers were still craving from Dad without Mom around. In my mind, I was older, I should be more understanding as I know I could handle it better than a girl mentally at my body's age.

Was I punishing myself since I caused trouble for everyone? Yeah, sadly I was. For being so independent in my last life, my pride took a hit that now I couldn't do a lot of things without help. Having the knowledge that I was supposed to help save the world in the future when I was physically challenged _didn't_ help at all.

"They'll learn," Albert insisted, "They have their own talents that I'm proud of too. If you can learn to duel, you can be more confident."

I should be happy that he was hinting at something I should start early on, but I kept quiet, wondering where he was taking this.

"Tell you what," my brother motioned, "Tonight after we eat your cake and also roast marshmallows over the barbecue fire tonight at the villa, Dad and I can show you, Russel, and Eugene how to Duel! It's your birthday after all! I don't think Dad will mind."

And that was the start of how I was going to be introduced to a Ground Duel at the age of three. Should I be concerned? I mean, Luca got herself into a coma for a month at the same age when she went to the Spirit World. The hospital was probably the _last_ place I want to get into again and make my family worry again. I shook my head as a way to snap out of it. My Mark of the Dragon as a Pathfinder was still nowhere in sight, which I was glad I wasn't born with it. Plus, so far, there hadn't been any communication from the Crimson Dragon or me meeting a duel monster spirit.

I mean, what were the odds?

.

.

* * *

 ** _Hours later..._**

Dad was over the moon when he found out that I wanted to learn how to duel. Eugene and Russel seemed to take my willingness to learn a sign that I was happier, but they were excited to see a real duel ever since they knew Dad was a duelist and that our eldest sibling went to our local Dueling Academy. After we finished roasting marshmallows, Dad and Albert had disappeared into the villa we were staying out to get their duel disks and decks. Dad had rented the small villa as a celebration of my birthday and also Albert's acceptance letter to the Duel Academy.

When they got back, Dad showed Eugene, Russel, and I what seemed to be the standard Hawaiian Duel Disk. Unlike Neo Domino City's standard duel disk that was mostly shaped marquise-like (oval diamond), the Hawaii Duel Disk's body where you put your deck and Extra Deck resembled a turtle's shell, while the placeholder where you put your cards had formed around the main body and could expand outwards in form of an ocean wave that had Polynesian tribal tattoos. I had to say I should have expected that the shape of your duel disk would be different depending on where you came from. However, I appreciate that this world was a lot richer than I expected it to be; it looked cool too.

As Dad showed us the parts of the Duel Disk, Albert was one explaining where to put your cards in, such as the monster zones, graveyard, extra deck, where insert trap/spell cards to how to activate them, the expandable slot for the field spell and the buttons that functioned to set the duel disk. Albert's duel disk was his size and the had brace was styled like how you would wear a watch, so he didn't have issues like Lua did in the anime of the Duel Disk sliding off his arm because it was too big.

Also, Dad had emphasized on taking your cards with great care. To my relief, unlike what you see in the anime or manga, people here like in the world I used to live in use _card sleeves_ to protect their card from pretty much what that could destroy them, mostly because of human hands. What sort of destruction do you ask? Pretty much along the lines how when it comes to how acid affects paper, humidity, and it also included dust mixed with sweat from your fingers. Plus, can you imagine the amount of dirt that gloves have for Turbo Duelists? I bet their cards wouldn't last a year if they played the cards without them being protected without card sleeves. The only difference is that here, the card sleeves had to be clear on both sides. In comparison to my life before, as long as you have the same color and size on the back for all the cards, it was still tournament legal.

After everything was said and done, Albert had wheeled my wheelchair to his side of the field, with my Dad standing opposite of us. Eugene and Russel had decided to stay in the middle on the side of the field to see the action of both sides.

I was actually thankful that Albert was considerate to let me shadow him in this duel, which means I could see his hand and how he operated the Duel Disk up close. It also seemed like he wanted me to learn from him too. Even Dad had voiced out to Albert he was proud of his kid in wanting to teach his little sister. Albert had grinned at the praise.

My first experience with a real duel was magical.

Pun intended.

Especially when my brother had started with summoning a spellcaster monster to the field. To tell you the truth, during his first turn, I was paying more attention to the hologram itself in awe than what monster it was or its stats/effects. I had seen amazing still-in-progress hologram technologies back at home such as the Microsoft's Hololens. However, what I was seeing now, it was as if the hologram were real, alive. I was tempted to touch it, but Eugene and Russel did that for me for being the excited kids that they were. I only giggled at their antics.

Albert and Dad had deliberately paused the duel for the moment so my brothers could have fun seeing their arms go through the holographic monster. One part of me sighed in relief at that. I was _not_ ready for Duel Monsters to have real mass (being solid), especially with the chaos that comes with the ARC System (and pretty much the whole dimension mess that came with it for the Arc-V anime or the time travel apocalypse insanity that was its manga). Soon after my brothers had enough, Dad and Albert resumed the duel.

From Albert's hand, I noticed that he was playing a deck based on spellcasters that relied on the spell counter mechanic. I never really preferred playing that sort of deck myself, but I did remember having a friend who built one into an aggressive deck. It seemed like my brother bricked his hand (cards weren't able to combo well) on his first turn that he ended up supporting the spellcaster on the field with a trap card that would probably negate the attack this turn only.

Dad, knowingly spotted the pout look on my brother's face because of the bad hand seemed amused. Looks like Albert was far from mastering a poker face that was needed in duels. I mean, even in my previous life when it came for those who participated in the meta competitions, it was best your opponent didn't know what you were thinking. Unless you were good at acting or bluffing. Albert was a genius for his age, but he still needed the experience to back it up. From what I can guess as Dad's eyes showed determination, he wasn't going make it easy even though he was dueling his own kid.

"Ready, Albert?" Dad said from across the field, "Remember what I said whether it's a performance on stage or duels–"

"Always give your 200 percent!" Albert exclaimed grinning.

Now it was Dad's turn.

"Since Albert has a monster and I have none, from my hand I can Special Summon **Performapal Revue Dancer (800/1000)**!"

 _What?!_

A familiar girl appeared in colored clouds of smoke wearing a bow on her head, was in a performance attire, and holding a lash you'd expect to use on circus animals.

 _No way,_ that monster on Dad's side of the field and its archetype only existed in the Arc-V Series! I was having second thoughts as I was partnered with Clear Wing Synchro Dragon. Maybe I shouldn't have been surprised, but I was even doubting that this was a coincidence at all. If my guess correct, then we should expect the boss monster of this particular deck to come out next.

Dad continued on, "This monster can count as two tributes for Tribute Summoning a Performapal monster! Let's take the Center Stage and Dazzle the Audience! Tribute Summon! Appear now, **Performapal Sky Magician (2500/2000)**!"

By the time the elusive monster iconic white spellcaster appeared on the field, I was seeing… but my mind was still working on believing. Was this what the Crimson Dragon meant? New monsters that wouldn't have existed in this timeline but now they did because I was here? As the duel went on, I was focused on my Dad's side of the field. The combos the deck was known for (owned by the Arc-V main protagonist's father) was exactly the same.

When my brother did a Ritual Summon I raised my hand, which stopped the duel for a moment. I kept the question simple and worded it in a way I sounded like someone unaware of the duel terminology. "Albert, how many summonses are there?"

Albert astonishingly didn't seem to be bothered that I was interrupting the duel. "It's Summoning Methods, Aria." He then did a recap on what counts as a Special Summon and what was a Normal Summon. Then he explained how Performapal Sky Magician got onto the field via Tribute Summoning. In addition, there was also an explanation about Ritual Summoning.

"Then there are monsters you summon from the Extra Deck! There are two types, Fusion Summoning, and Synchro Summoning!" Albert explained brightly. "What I did was a Ritual Summon!"

Ah, that made sense. Dad's Performapal deck that focused on Sky Magician was based around Tribute summoning. Well, that concludes on what the Crimson Dragon had said was true. Since this was technically the Synchro Era, we were using the _first_ Master Rules. To make it simple, they were the main rules of the card game; Master Rules 2 introduced XYZ Summoning, Master Rule 3 for Pendulums, and the latest Master Rule 4 that was for Link Summoning. It was kind of a bummer that the other summoning methods didn't exist yet when I had a lot of fun mixing summoning methods. Also, I remembered that there was only one field spell zone which meant that only one field spell could be activated at any given time, rather than having your own side to the field for your own field spell card.

Holy crap, that was _ages_ ago. I made a mental note to borrow Albert's book on dealing with the currently applicable rules in the game. Perhaps the ban list too if that was a thing here.

Still, with the promise of new monsters, as long as they belonged to this era's Master Rules… could it be that the new archetypes existed here too? Well, I have a lifetime to find out. Hopefully, I won't meet too many crazies to duel before I face the Dark Signers.

I may have jinxed myself there.

Let's forget I've even thought of that.

For battle done on holograms, it was pretty intense. With Albert going against a Deck that was as good as my Dad's (which was virtually an anime deck), he did admirably well even though he lost. He fought tooth and nail to keep his Life Points up and at the same time put a dent in Dad's Life points. The result was that Dad had 2000 LP left. Like in the anime, the game starts at 4000 Life Points than the 8000 when one played the TCG in my past life. It meant that setting up the field or having the right cards in your hand was crucial. I had yet to see anything that was related to the 'Heart of the Cards', but I kept my mind open. The fact I was alive (again) thanks to a red dragon deity, I was bound to experience it sometime in the future.

Just as the holograms were going to disappear ending the duel, I blinked.

 _Did Performapal Sky Magician salute at me with the tip of his hat?_

I wiped my eyes again still not believing what I had just seen. Yet, before I could confirm it, the duel disks were switched off. Duel monster holograms don't come alive by themselves, right? Unless the card had a specific spirit in them involved. Like a card in the episode where Crow got his Black-Winged Dragon card that dealt real damage but the owner wasn't involved with a destiny of being a Millennium Item holder or being a Signer. I didn't remember the name of the monster, but it was responsible for Pearson's death.

Back to the field, when my mind was back from my observations, Dad sweat dropped when my eldest brother was silently sulking after losing the duel. Eugene and Russel were ignorantly praising Dad for being the cool one in this situation. I rolled my eyes at them and focused on my depressed brother.

Oh, Albert. Even if he was a genius, he was still a kid at heart. It reminded me of Lua when he lost to Yusei after a duel. Only, since Albert knew he was considered a genius, and he was beating himself up for making mistakes. He was a perfectionist too.

When I clapped and smiled at him, Albert was confused. "Aria?"

"Well done, Albert," I said and clapped louder before I stopped.

Confusion was all over his face. "But I lost."

"But Dad is _far_ older than you," I retorted crossing my arms in a pout-like manner just like a naive kid understanding what they're saying, ignoring Dad's refusal of 'Oi, I not _that_ old!' in the background. "He's dueled hundreds of people before. You just need to do the same."

You just needed more experience and learn from fighting different opponents was what I wanted to say, but I was mindful to make the explanation simple so he could understand.

The despair in his eyes faded, and soon after they were filled with hope. "I guess you're right. Thanks, Aria."

I nodded and grinned, happy that my brother bounced back from this defeat. He still had a long road ahead of him.

Albert grinned widely back.

Well, if one can claim they have the potential to duel, I might as well join them, right?

"Okay then, I know what I want to be too!" I chirped raising my hand brightly, which caused my Dad and brothers to look at me weirdly. "I wanna be a duelist too!"

Dad did a double take on my declaration, "Eh? What about wanting to be a musician?"

"I wanna be both of them!" I said putting enough vigor in my body language to say I really wanted this. "Daddy's also a great performer and duelist too! _Pretty please?_ " Cue puppy eyes of doom.

Dad laughably melted. "Alright, sweetheart. But you have to take it easy, okay? The Doctor said you shouldn't push yourself."

"Okay!" I said as I fist pumped in the air.

To someone looking this scene without knowing who I was, I was a little kid that was inspired by their older sibling in starting a hobby that could further develop into their future profession. To me, this was one victory to the many more goals that I was going to fight for in the future. If I was hindered physically, then I needed to get ahead mentally. At least it was a way I reasoned to myself I was aiming to meet the Signers once I get older.

I needed to grow stronger in this world too.

Come to think of it, I was very fortunate to be in a world that revolved finishing conflicts with cards. Things could have been worse if I had been dropped in a world where you had to kill for a living like in Naruto's Elemental Nations or stay alive from man-eating giants in Attack on Titan. Or any other post-apocalyptic worlds that had to do with zombie infestations or humanity ceasing to exist. With my condition, I would have been up for slaughter.

While fighting with cards may seem laughable compared to fighting with real swords/guns/any weapon, I realized that it was a lot fairer. Like Albert said, as long you could read, make sure you know how much life points you had to maintain it, and know your cards, there was still a chance to win. Still, knowing ways to avoid bricking, keeping deck consistency, having draw power, making sure there was a way to search and summon monsters when your field was nuked, and so many other things that would help in the long run.

Since I was so eager to learn, Dad had decided to introduce me to a playgroup that was geared to introducing monsters and the basic mechanics of the game since I was still three years old. Who knew such a thing existed, right? Same here. Although, I was cautiously optimistic about what to expect if it would help me.

.

.

* * *

Three words.

It was _loud._

Loud in the kind where you're annoyed, there was so much sound you couldn't focus on something that you're doing. We were in the reception area, Dad was signing me up and my brothers were going to be accompanying me. Even if I was an adult in mind, I was nervous. Should I really be here? I was already having doubts that I was going to tolerate the noise much longer—not to mention we weren't even inside yet.

Looking at Dad, I felt guilty if I didn't take part in it, all the convincing 30 minutes earlier was for naught. Before we were in this reception area, a caretaker of the place interviewed us. When he deemed I was better suited to a different age group due to my reading skill, I was put in a group from ages 4 to 6.

Eugene was holding my hand when he saw my knuckles were gripped and turning white. "Aria? Are you scared?" he genuinely asked me with concern.

"A little?" I lied.

"Don't worry, we're here," Eugene pointed to himself, Russel and then Albert.

He never got to continue to reassure me as we were shown inside. Dad gave a thumbs up, as adults had to wait in the waiting room. To me, as I looked around, it was interesting to see the activities that were done here. To motivate writing skills, there was one section that was dedicated to writing monster card names. They were simple grid lines that taught you how to write cursive. There were other sections that were focused on arts and craft, but where I was wheeled in by our caretaker was to one part that had to do with playing duel monsters.

All the kids from ages four to six were sitting on the floor, paying attention to a teacher who was teaching about the battle phase till the end phase with large pictures. Since I entered later, they didn't see me at all. It wasn't until that session ended did the teacher introduced me to the other children.

"Everyone, this Aria. She's new here! Let's all say, hi!"

The 'hi' so to say was parroted, but I noticed some of them were half-hearted. Especially when they eyed my wheelchair. The teacher and caretaker were really kind enough for me to set me up with a group to learn in, but once they stood back, the children were keeping their distance from me. I heaved a nervous breath. Let's just get this over and done with.

I was reaching a girl nearest to me in a handshake to introduce myself, "Hi, I'm Aria. I–"

I was shocked that she had slapped my hand away and hid behind another girl.

 _What?!_

That drew the attention of the other kids who started to talk like I wasn't there.

"She doesn't have a leg."

"Don't come near her. We'll lose a leg too!"

"Run!"

"Getaway!"

" _Go away_!"

Eugene was having none of it. "Hey! That's rude! Apologize!"

"Says _who_?!"

"Don't be mean to my sister!" Russel shouted back.

It ended in chaos. The caretakers had quickly intervened and tried to quieten down the children, but most of them had already decided that they weren't going to be listening to my brothers or the caretakers. I was quickly wheeled away to the edge of the room by Albert.

I didn't even realize that tears were flowing down my cheeks until Albert had wiped a tissue to my face. My adult mind was beyond frustrated. I understood that they didn't understand being young and all… but it didn't make their words any less painful. That rejection had hit me unexpectedly I just didn't have words to say anything. I was a one-legged monster to them, wasn't I? In the end, the child body that I had now only reacted the way it could, which ended up me shedding tears no matter how much I cursed myself for crying. I wasn't supposed to be worked up about this.

Five minutes later, Dad was called in. When he got an explanation from the caretakers and teachers, he gave them an angry disappointed look. I could see he was keeping all his anger in because there were still kids around us. I had never seen him so angry. Silently, he ordered Albert to wheel me to the car and he disappeared into another room mentioning about refunds.

The car ride back home was silent. Albert had let me lean on his shoulder since I was mentally exhausted, while both Russel and Eugene were sighing up a storm, still angry at what had happened but said nothing. Dad had calmed down, as his fingers were tapping to the beat of the radio.

"Dad?" I asked.

"Yes, honey?"

"I'm sorry."

Dad sighed looking at me through the upper mirror. "Aria, sweetheart, _don't_ apologize. It wasn't your fault. The other children don't understand. The adults in the room weren't good at handling everything either."

Albert gripped my hand, comforting me. He then asked, "Is there another place where it won't turn out like what had happened where Aria can learn Duel Monsters or go to school in general?"

Dad's tone was neutral, "We can try a few places, but I want to see how they work first and ask as many questions possible."

"And if it turns out like _last_ time?" Eugene retorted still seething.

Dad sighed again, "We'll find another way. At least before your sister can try to apply a scholarship for the Duel Academy or Music Academy, whichever she thinks will be best for her."

After what had happened to me in that particular playgroup, my Dad was very selective about how he was tackling my education. You see, my health at the time was still frail that I had a fever that night. Dad had explained that the doctors had warned him that if I was handling too many negative emotions it would build up and affect my health. It would eventually disappear as I grew older with my immune system and mentality being stronger, but for now, he didn't want to take risks. He decided, in the end, to call in tutors/volunteers he trusted, and I would be at Dad's workplace in another room but close enough he could check on me learning. My brothers had no arguments with the arrangement and eventually returned to school without worrying too much about me.

I'm fully aware that my Dad judging the fact I wasn't ready to mingle with my peers based on one experience was unfair for me. However, as a single Dad, I get where he was coming from. I was aware that my childhood was most likely going to be lonely, but I wasn't going to complain, my current body couldn't handle the pressure yet. I'll get stronger, but it needed time.

All in all, I finally decided to focus on what I can learn in the least amount of time with now having private tutoring. Sure, there was a center for amputees that had children with the same condition that I have, but it was on the other side of Hawaii, and I didn't want Dad to waste his time and drive four hours back and forth for me. For now, I guess friendships weren't on my bucket list of things to do. Sure, I made acquaintances here and there with the kids of the other performers where Dad worked, but I never really knew them or clicked with them despite going over to their houses.

So, I studied like there was no tomorrow.

The rejection incident from those kids had taught me that I wasn't going anywhere if my leg was going to be like this if I was an average person. In that vein, it's why I decided to go all out and wasn't going to back down. Sure, I was an average adult thrown in a situation that labeled me a 'kid' genius, but I wasn't going to let that make me arrogant. I was going to plan ahead. My main motivation came from one day when I was filling in a diary in trying to remember the events of 5D's that I had noticed that both Rex and Rudger Goodwin replaced their severed arms with robotic arms. That was a beacon of hope for me, which meant I had crazy goals to accomplish but need the 'genius' title to get things done. Now, since I was still growing, it would be redundant and expensive to change to an artificial leg that I would outgrow in a year, but maybe if I had the resources and the right people to help me, I'd be able to walk once the Fortune Cup comes around.

Dad later had taken care of Mom's old family home and I inherited what was left of her violin collection which was sized from small (still a bit large but I'll eventually grow into) to the one she had met Dad with. Unfortunately, her best sounding one disappeared along with her the day that the Zero Reverse happened. I happily welcomed music back in my life and flourished under the guidance of my Dad's friends who were part of his theater. I was learning the piano at average speed, compared to what I was capable on the violin. Even Eugene had defeated me at the piano and he started _later_ than I did.

Two years passed by quickly and life was quiet. I hadn't seen much of my Dad or Albert duel in a while as both were busy. Dad was busy in preparing for the town festival, and Albert had exams. While eventually Eugene and Russel played the game too, they didn't take it as seriously as Albert did in duels as they had their own hobbies they preferred to focus on. So, I grew bored of playing with them. It's not like we used duel disks; duel disks don't come cheap. Albert had one because he was an academy student, and Dad was the adult in the family that needed it to strike deals/persuades others through dueling. Remember that Dad is a frugal spender? Yeah, that. It was still amazing we were able to still buy cards though. I was surprised that we barely owned toys, and even if we did, they were handed down in good condition to us and not bought.

Also, it had been two years since I thought I saw my Dad's Performapal Sky Magician as my first duel spirit that saluted with his hat in a duel. It made me wonder if I'd ever meet more of them. Ironically, that thought led me to a 'fateful event' you'd think would happen nearer to the timeline of the anime if I were in my teens. At five years old, the place where Dad was preparing for that town festival was the very location where I found out more about who I was as a Pathfinder.

Raising the absurdness level that was destiny, fate, and choices I was going to have to make to point blank insanity…

Guess what I found and eventually was given?

The Signer Dragon Cards that escaped the Zero Reverse.

I kid you not.

Well, I'll be damned, that fate wielding overgrown red lizard by the name of the Crimson Dragon sure had been busy.

* * *

 _ **To Be Continued…**_

 _ **.**_

 _ **.**_

 _ **AU Notes: DUN DUN DUN.** XD Until next time? #AvoidsPitchforks _I thought I'd make things more interesting as Duel Monsters have always popped around the world (Like the Nordic Gods, Atlantis, Egypt, Aztec, etc.) So why not Hawaii?

On the topic of decks or cards, yes, there will be newer deck types coming in due to Aria's involvement and the Crimson Dragon's meddling (Performapal Sky Magician being one of them). Although, it will still be limited to Tribute Summoning, Ritual Summoning, Fusion Summoning, and Synchro Summoning being in the 5D's era. I plan for her to have a unique point of view as a person striving to adapt to a world where some rules are outdated for her. Being from a time that is different, Aria's mindset on deck making tends to follow people who have experienced dealing with Master Rules 4.

Got any deck/archetypes/engines you might think would meet the criteria and you think can be in this fic? Let me know. ;)

Thanks for reading! Don't hesitate to drop a review, favorite, or follow, and have an amazing day!


	3. The Night of Stars and Spirits

****The Star Pathfinder and the Future Dragon****

 ** **AU Notes:**** I'm mostly using the Japanese names as I've watched the series in sub version.

 ** **My thanks for:**** ** **Shadanai2438,**** ** **DarkPhoenix71, Sangai-Havoc,**** ** **TheReginS1, Umbra99,**** ** **lilith20047**** ** **and dbzmariogamer**** ****for the follows****

 **Thank you to dresden12,** **mjosh marcos** **, pokecharmer007, lilith20047, TheReginS1, Lulumo, Dragon of the Eclipsing Moon, and frostmanw101 for the favs.**

 **Thanks for the reviews: Hashirama 1710, Jcollect2000, Lulumo, and two Guests.**

 **.**

 **To Jcollect:** Thank you for the deck recommendations. =) I'll take into account for Yang Zing, Shaddolls, and Crystron Archtypes. Fluffal/Edge Imp with Frightfur fusion monsters sound fun too! I've never played Evigishki before, so I'll look into that.

To answer a question from an **anonymous reviewer** , yes, Speedroids will show up eventually. As for Decks, Aria isn't picky on a single archetype and would most likely have a mixed deck that still has good synergy (which mixing and matching engines is the current trend of the meta). Clear Wing will be treated as the trump card, so other deck types have a chance to be shown off in the fic.

 **To Lulumo:** Thank you for taking the time to review. Ironically enough, when I read your review, I was finishing this chapter which addresses it. x)

 ** **.****

Chapter III here we go!

Hope you enjoy!

* * *

 _ **Chapter 3: The Night of Stars and Spirits**_

* * *

" _The reality is that although you are free to choose,_

 _you can't choose the consequences of your choices._

 _They're preloaded. It's a package deal."_

– _Sean Convey_

* * *

"Aria!"

"Yes, Dad?"

"Come on, sweetie!" Dad called. "Grandma Hokulani's here!"

"Coming, Dad!"

At five years old with my current body stronger and larger than I was three, and I had a children's light blue framed wheelchair that I could use independently without someone needing me to constantly push me from behind. It was nothing near to a real leg, but I had more freedom to move on my own. This wheelchair was pretty amazing, as it had settings that would adapt to the how tall a child was. Something that I was thankful for since I was growing. It was a gift from a marathon fundraiser to help kids with disabilities. I've never been so thankful I could move more freely because of this. I made a promise to myself, when I was older and have an income of my own in this world, I was definitely going to pay back this sort of kindness.

I used my arms and pushed myself to wheel towards the front door of our house, then quickly grabbed my bag of writing supplies and books on the way. Once it was secured on my lap, I was at the door where Dad was waiting for me and opening the door. He was with an old Hawaiian woman and he was asking if everything was done.

"Brian, just focus on helping and organize the ceremony," the elder lady said. "I'll take care of your daughter for the weekend and see you as soon as you're done."

Dad sighed, "I wish my sons could have joined with her. But they seem adamant in wanting to join the boy scout outing that the community here was holding for the rest of the weekend."

Grandma Hokulani waved a finger at my Dad, "Hey, they can't always be burdened all the time. Let the boys have their fun. And sometimes, you need some time to think for yourself, young man."

"I'm at your mercy, Grandma Hokulani," my Dad said as he raised his hands in surrender sweating bullets. When he spotted me, he coughed and tried to recover his reputation as the 'cool dad'. "Hey, Aria, you got everything?"

I giggled at his predicament but didn't comment on it. "Yes, Dad. I'm good to go."

"Good. I want you on your best behavior, okay?"

"Yes, Dad. Always." I replied back smiling at him.

"A big hug before you go?" Dad asked.

I nod.

He gave me loving hug and a kiss on my forehead before he let me go. "I love you, kiddo."

"I love you too, Dad."

With that, he helped me get into the Grandma's Hokulani's car and folded my wheelchair to be put in the trunk. As the car drove out of our housing area, I waved to my dad before he was out of sight.

"So, Aria. How are you feeling today?" Grandma Hokulani asked.

"Fine, thank you," I said. "Are we doing anything today?"

She hummed before saying, "Well, after we drop things by my house, we're going to the cultural center. I'm helping a friend on her arts and craft classes. Do you want to try it out while we're there?"

"Yes, please!" I agreed, curious what class this might be about.

She laughed at my enthusiasm. "Very well, dear. We should be at my place shortly."

Grandma Hokulani as you would have guessed isn't my real grandmother in this life, but she was an old Hawaiian woman with white hair in her late 50s that everyone the community where I lived knew her. They call her 'Grandma' as she's known to take care of kids when their parents are busy and has that grandmotherly side of her that loves to teach kids. She has kids of her own, but they've moved out and have their own families too. Despite that, she's one of the founders of the cultural center we had here in the area, which mostly had to do with the preservation of Hawaiian culture. From one of my dad's descriptions on her, she also worked as a tour guide now and then, telling the stories and folklore.

To me, she was probably one if not the very few motherly figures I could aspire to where I lived. When dad was confused about how he should raise his little girl better, Grandma Hokulani was around to help him and give him advice. And while I didn't hear the whole conversation between her and Dad before I left the house, it seemed she was giving him a pep talk too. Just say she's a good maternal influence on our family since my mother wasn't around.

What I loved most about her, was that she was observant enough that I was smarter than I looked. She wasn't afraid to let me try harder things to do as long as she was there to supervise. One of my favorite pastimes with her other than going to the cultural center was to learn about braids and how to tie ribbons in my hair. In my past life, I couldn't grow my hair long because of stupid hair loss and was forced to keep it short. This time around, since I didn't have that problem, I was going to take advantage of it. I kept to the simpler styles when it came to braids and ribbon in my hair though since I wasn't the one for long morning routines in front of a mirror.

Other than she was the mother figure I craved in this life, she was the normalcy that I was glad for knowing considering how rooted the Duel Monsters game was in this world. Once in a while when I was with her, I didn't have to always thinks about what life that revolved around a TCG had in store for me.

Or so I thought.

.

.

* * *

The next day, we were eating lunch as usual in Grandma Hokulani's house. My eyes were on my friendship bracelet that we both had the chance to make and finish yesterday at the cultural center, but my mind was drifting elsewhere, mostly on my Dad. Today was Memorial Day in Hawaii and usually, that meant that the Floating Lantern Ceremony cross-cultural event was going to take place. In the past (at least in this world where I now lived in) it only took place at Ala Moana Beach, but due to its popularity in my current world, towns with a large gathering people and tourism destinations along the calmer waters of Hawaii held the event too. In the town where I lived, this was its fifth time of celebrating it. It was oddly enough as old as I was. As for my father, well, he was part of the organizing committee that dealt with the soundstage and everything.

From what I know, this was his first time taking part in this event.

Although truthfully, I think he took part in the event because that was his way of reminiscing the people he had lost in the Zero Reverse. It started to make sense really, especially when he had sent his kids away to have fun. In a way, I guess Dad didn't really have the time to fully mourn for the ones he cared for who died in the incident. I had a feeling he didn't want his kids to see him break down and cry. Dad most likely wanted to mourn privately.

I blinked when Grandma Hokulani laid out a paper Lantern in front of me with its other parts and that my empty plate had been taken away.

"What's this, Grandma Hokulani?" I asked her.

"It's for the Floating Lantern Ceremony tonight," she told me. "Why don't you write to your mother and sister? Or you can write something you want to say but can't say, to others that have passed away."

I looked at her strangely at her cryptic words, "What about you? You're not going to write on this?"

She smiled back at me, but her eyes told me of a sorrowful story behind it. "My youngest son has done that, he's the one taking us to the ceremony. It's usually one lantern per family. As far as I know, your father doesn't have one. But between you and me, we're having the front row seat."

"Front row seat?" I asked making sure I was hearing correctly. Do beaches have front row seats?

"You'll see my dear," the elderly woman winked at me. "Now, write to your heart's content. You don't need to show me what's on it. What's important is what you want to say and hope that your message will travel far."

She gave me a couple of thick markers before she left the room.

I was utterly confounded why I was the one writing this in the first place, but when I thought of the things I haven't said… somehow, the words just came to me. On one side, I wrote to my mother and sister, I told them that even though Dad, me and my brothers were fine, everyone missed them; I wished they were peacefully resting where they were. The second side, I wrote to all of the those who died in the Zero Reverse, including Dad's friends who were part of the Starlight Theater. Maybe not all of them yet could rest peacefully, but in the future, they will be at peace once the Dark Signers were defeated, and they will move on. The third side was a prayer to the fallen soldiers that the country had fought for, just something that I thought deserved to be on here because it was Memorial Day.

As for the fourth side… I wrote to those I had left behind in my past life, that while I wasn't there anymore, I would never forget them. In fear of sounding weird for a 5-year-old, I wrote the message with the most ambiguous sentences possible. Once I finished writing, I set the paper into the lantern of what would be the boat that would float on the sea.

I stared at my handiwork. The writing wasn't the neatest per say, however, it was relieving to let that all out.

Still, there was something that was bothering me.

How did Grandma Hokulani know _what_ to say?

I shrugged, I could ask her later tonight.

.

.

* * *

That night the waters of the beach were amazingly not turbulent at all.

Where was I, do you ask?

I was in the water on a boat. That was Grandma Hokulani's meaning of front row seats.

If Dad knew where I was, he'd freak out. Yet Grandma Hokulani said this was going to be our secret.

Not that I was afraid of drowning, even though I didn't have my left leg, I knew how to swim and to keep afloat with my hands at least.

I had my Floating Lantern boat in hand and there was another placed near me which I guessed that Grandma Hokulani's son wrote in a different language I couldn't read at all. Kapono, her youngest son who was 28 years old, was at the boat engine got as near as possible to where the event was held. Unlike his older brothers, Kapono traveled the world, and it was his turn this year to take his mother to the event. His skin was paler than his mother and had dirty blond hair, as Grandma Hokulani's late husband was born from a migrated Irish family.

Once we were near enough, he put the engine off and let down the anchor down slowly. After we waited for the main boats that headed the ceremony were placed in the water first and the soothing music from the shore filled the air. Once there were enough boats in the water, Kapono had lit the candles in our boats and set them off towards the other floating lantern boats.

It was an amazing sight to behold, hundreds if not thousands of floating lanterns were lighting up the waters and each one of them had a message to loved ones who had passed on. When my own boat joined the others, it was as though I finally had let go all the things I've wanted to say to those in my past life. Oddly enough, it felt like I was truly beginning on my journey of not looking back on regrets.

It was Grandma Hokulani who then interrupted me from going on with my thoughts. "It's been a long day for you, little one."

When I turned to face her I was startled that behind her was a large owl as big as she was, with a golden crown of all things perching on the boat, but it was transparent.

My jaw dropped. "What?! How? Is that-?"

Grandma Hokulani smiled warmly, "We call her an _Akua,_ a major spirit, in your words. But she is the spirit that mirrors me, my soul. I think I remember telling you the story of _aumakua_?"

I could only nod numbly remembering that they were the spirits of ancestors who had become an 'ancestral god' to their descendants. There was also the belief that Pre-Christian Polynesians don't believe in the supernatural, or in other words, that spirits were part of the natural world. I looked at the owl again that was behind Grandma Hokulani that was looking at me probably like I was a piece of meat (maybe?), yet it seemed familiar like I've seen it somewhere.

It's Kapono who chuckled at my reaction and took a seat next to his mother, "If you know your Duel Monsters, kid, that is what you call _**'An Owl of Luck' (300/500)**_ which is part of the Necrovalley archetype."

"I… I don't have anything to say to that," I blurted out since I've never seen a Duel monster spirit this vividly before and was still in shock.

Kapono waved his hand, "Don't sweat it. You're not going crazy or anything, kid. It's just that normal people can't see them. It's either in our culture you have a lot of _M_ _ana_ or spiritual life force, to begin with, you're usually chosen by a higher being to do a huge task in your future or you're both."

When I still said nothing, Kapono points out to the water where a shark with a gold plated nose had his head above the water, "I guess I can go with introductions as well. Over there, that's _**Cyber Shark (2100/2000),**_ he's my spirit. Usually, you wouldn't be able to see our duel monster spirits if they don't want to show themselves to you, but the Floating Lantern Ceremony at its peak is a ceremony that connects the living to the spiritual world so to speak. You should have another look."

And when I did, I gasped, there were many spirits in many shapes and forms hovering over the thousands of lanterns on the water. More were flying or floating in the night sky as if I was seeing a great migration towards the heavens. From animals to humanoids and even to machine-like entities of Duel Monsters I've seen before. Even some seemed relatively normal and not duel monster spirit like, which made me confused.

"As you can see, not all of them are duel monster spirits," Kapono pointed out. "We're a lot more strict on our beliefs than other people in the world that some of the gods and goddesses here have been banned for Industrial Illusions to be made into cards. To our government, it's disrespectful to confining them into cards, and the last thing we need is the Hawaiian islands getting cursed for it. Especially when normal tourists are _still_ getting cursed of taking volcano rocks from some of our islands."

That was eerily funny, considering the last fact kind of what happened in my previous life too. The story has it that a famous YouTuber took a rock from a volcano site on his holiday to Hawaii and when he got back home, his dog died so suddenly. Hawaii's goddess was pretty much the volcano personified and the last thing you wanted to do was to make her angry. Like the Hulk angry. Industrial Illusions weren't stupid enough to make another card set of Gods, right? Considering what happened in DM and GX, I thought they'd have plenty of experience to not do it again.

"Those people on the beach," I gestured over to the crowd, "They can't see the spirits?"

Kapono shrugged, "Very few Hawaiians might. If we have strong ancestral roots, the more _Mana_ we have, and most likely we can see them. Although, most of our _Aumakua_ don't always prefer to become duel monsters and just take over animals who are alive when needed. It's usually rare for foreigners to have an _Akua,_ but some are just gifted or destined to have one."

There was an uncomfortable silence after that. My eyes would dart from the shark with what looked like it had golden plating on top of it, to the owl with a crown, and went back to their owners. It was as if both of them were giving me time to digest the information (which was very thoughtful and I was glad for) that this was my reality. If it wasn't obvious, I guess what Kapono had just said had to do with the part that 'Duel monsters isn't a children's card game' to put it so bluntly. I now had a lot of questions, and most likely they had answers.

Might as well start at the beginning.

Here goes nothing.

I looked both Grandma Hokulani and Kapono nervously, "Um, why am I here?"

At my question, Grandma Hokulani huffed crossing her arms, "Yes, Kapono, you _were_ the one that requested her here. And you were the one that asked me that Aria should write on that floating lantern. So other than knowing that she can see duel monster spirits, you did have other reasons, hmm?"

Kapono's face turned expressionless as if he was in a duel.

I did _not_ like that look. It was like as if he–

He whipped out his hand out and ordered, " _ **Cyber Shark,**_ attack her!"

I winced. _'Ah, Crap!'_

"Kapono, _what are you doing_?!" his mother hissed.

Cyber Shark jumps out of the water, jaws open, and I instinctively covered my head with my arms.

But those jaws never came. A painful growl was heard instead, a splash in the water rocks the boat slightly, and soon was replaced by a familiar roar. A transparent white-blue-black armored hand with numerous fingers was separating me protectively between Kapono and Grandma Hokulani. When I turned back, it was an old friend I hadn't seen in a while in all her glory, Clear Wing Synchro Dragon.

She was _huge_ in the same size when I first met her. Since I was now a kid, I felt _tiny_ compared to her.

"You _idiot_ of a son!" There was a loud smack what I thought was a flip-flop colliding to a head. "You could have seriously injured her!" Another smack was heard. "She's like a granddaughter to me! How do you think her father would react if she got seriously injured!"

"I was just– Ow!– testing– Ack!– a theory– Stop it, Mom!" Kapono was desperately trying to avoid his mother in a small boat to no avail. When he clearly looked up at what was supposed to be a five-year-old's duel monster spirit, he gaped. "A Dragon?! But–"

If glares could kill, Kapono could have died ten times over thanks to Clear Wing.

The guy was now sweating bullets. "Uuhhh– Nice Dragon?"

That only made my dragon angrier. Internally, I was face-palming. Before my dragon wanted to active its wings for a Dichroic Mirror attack, I put my hands on her larger hand that was still protecting me.

"Clear Wing, _no_! _Don't_!"

Clear Wing stopped but glowered and growled at me unhappily.

"At least consider Grandma Hokulani's feelings if her son passes away because of you," I said quickly, panicked.

The part where if Clear Wing did kill Kapono in cold murder and I had to explain _that_ to Dad, was left unsaid. I have _zero_ belief that duel monsters being this real will have people end up in the "Shadow Realm". That was all in the dub, due to censorship. The original was a lot more morbid than that. The realm of darkness was pretty much the equivalent of hell. Also, my mother and sister's deaths were enough proof that this reality was affected by Duel Monsters whether I wanted it or not.

Grandma Hokulani nodded quickly, "I concur. And I deeply apologize. Please ignore this pathetic excuse of my son. He _won't_ go unpunished when he gets back onshore." In the background, I noticed that the Owl that was her duel monster spirit was pecking the hell out of the shark in a pissed off manner, mirroring the frustrations of her human.

My dragon grunted at Grandma Hokulani's suggestion and relented although it was done halfheartedly. Clear Wing's hand remained in its position and was adamant that I was still under her protection. I sighed in relief as at least the worst of what could have happened was avoided, which could have turned out Kapono would be dead or brain dead (vegetative state of mind, call it what you will). Thank whatever deity was out there that my dragon _listened._ This confrontation reminded me of when Ancient Fairy Dragon was (will be?) infuriated at 'the Professor' when Luca fought him during the Fortune Cup. I was pretty sure that if the duel hadn't ended up in a draw, the man's mind would have been turned into mush from a dragon's equivalent of Yami Yugi's Mind Crush from Season 0.

And they say out of the Signer dragons that Ancient Fairy Dragon is one of the nicer ones. _Pfft, right._ Well, I guess those people forget about the saying of 'beware the nice ones', because you sure hell don't know what they look like when they're enraged. I was fully aware that Clear Wing Synchro Dragon could do worse. Especially when you compare card effects, Clear Wing won in the destruction department of eliminating foes while Ancient Fairy Dragon was specifically catered to get rid of field spells.

"Now that's settled," the elder lady coughed, and glared at her son, "Kapono, _EXPLAIN_ _._ "

"Well–", Kapono gulped as other than his mother's glare, he had Clear Wing's full attention too.

To sum it up, Clear Wing Synchro Dragon used Leer. Kapono's defense fell. She could have attacked and the guy would've fainted, but I gave my dragon a stern look. If this wasn't so serious, it would have been funny how this resembled something you'd expect out of a Pokemon game.

When my dragon gave no indications it would do anything, Kapono stuttered, "I– I needed to know if Aria is a Pathfinder as well."

"As well?" I echoed not really believing what I was hearing.

Kapono then spotted something that made him slightly less afraid than he was supposed to be. "…Your right arm."

Hmm? Right arm? Could it mean–

When I looked at it, it was glowing white like back when I was in the realm of nothingness; I had not seen my Mark of the Dragon in the last 5 years.

Grandma Hokulani was contemplative all of a sudden as she noticed what was on my arm, "That symbolizes that the Crimson Dragon has marked you to be part of great destiny."

While I already knew that, I gave her my best 'confused' expression. The expression most likely had passed her observations as I was questioning how she knew about the Crimson Dragon in the first place. This was Hawaii, and we were definitely not in Southern Peru where the geoglyphs of the Earthbound Immortals were. Or was she kind of like the grandpa Yanagi who was in the first season of 5D's and just knew about old legends from around the world?

Kapono shook his head in bewilderment, "Considering her duel monster spirit, I shouldn't be surprised, but– holy cow– this is still a LOT to take in."

"Kapono, you're not any making sense to Aria," Grandma Hokulani scolded him. She then turned to me, "My dear, I think we should explain a few things first."

"Umm, ookay?" I said lamely.

So by pointing out the mark that was glowing on my arm, she told me the story of the Crimson Dragon and how each of its five dragon servants came along with a Signer much like how old man Yanagi described it. However, where Old man Yanagi only had partial information like he did in the anime, Grandma Hokulani knew more.

During the first war, which started with the confrontation of the Crimson Devil (Scarlet Nova) or the strongest of the of the Earthbound Immortals, the war had come to a standstill. Thus, the Crimson Dragon then had chosen 5 dragons along with 5 Signers to turn the tide. The Crimson Dragon defeated the Crimson Devil with the help of a Signer who had a 'Blazing Soul'. All was left was to fight off the remaining Earthbound Immortals, but not all of the Signers or dragons had turned out well. Grandma Hokulani told the story that by the end of the first war, one dragon could not join the rest of its other Signer dragons in the next one because it was far too injured and its Signer had died too. Injured and grieving, the Crimson Dragon had let that dragon go, and would later replace its place with another dragon during the second war.

That had triggered a memory inside my mind. I knew the dragon she was speaking of. During the time I watched the anime, in the first war it was depicted that Life Stream Dragon was absent, but Black-Winged Dragon was there instead the time Jack dueled with the Familiar of the 'Red/Scarlet Nova'. Hearing of what happened to the previous Signer that was partnered with Black-Winged Dragon, it was obvious that Life Stream Dragon took its place in the second war.

So skip 5000 years later, and the second war starts. To circumvent the consequences of the first war from happening, the Crimson Dragon chooses a person to be its personal guide to the Signers and gives the title of the 'Star Pathfinder' with a dragon of their own who was to be born soon. While the Star Pathfinder successfully connects this generation's Signers with their dragons, their dragon could only be ready to fight once the ceremony of rebirth was complete. However, as I know, it doesn't end well.

Grandma Hokulani then recited the same things that the Crimson Dragon had said, that the Star Pathfinder had tragically died along with their dragon during the ceremony when the Earthbound Gods had created an equal adversary to counter the Crimson Dragon's plan to further evolve itself and its servants. During the end of this war, all the Signers survived, but one of the Signer Dragons was taken by the Earthbound Immortals as a desperate attempt to win, despite they would have to wait another 5000 years to be unleashed on the world again.

So basically it led to the third war that was going to happen soon.

"It seems that this time around," the elder lady said, "You may have more Signers than previously. Originally, there were only five Marks, the Head, Wings, Front-claw, Back-claw, and Tail. Regardless, I see another mark has manifested on your arm, a Heart. My guess is that the previous Dragon that was injured will return, and you may have six Signers to find instead of five."

I nod at that information. But I wanted to ask something I had been wanting to ask. "I think I understand what the Crimson Dragon is doing, but what really is a "Pathfinder"? And… I'm five. Are you sure that everything you said I won't forget?"

At this, Grandma Hokulani chuckled. "Ah, that may be true. But that oaf of a son of mine is a Pathfinder too. You've always been a very bright child since I met you and your _Mana_ is very strong for a child. Now that you have shown that you have the Star Pathfinder Mark, it's understandable. If there is something that marks a person as a Pathfinder is that they are clever than what their age shows, and it is most likely a result of reincarnation."

 _No friggin' way._ This time I looked Kapono and asked, "Is it true you're reincarnated?"

Kapono shrugged, "This is my second life kind? Yeah. You might be five years old, but being a Pathfinder makes things easier to remember since you've lived before. Usually, people who become a Pathfinder have died before at earliest in their teens, and there isn't a maximum age how old when you die. Personally, I'm older than my mother if I added my previous age with the life I have now."

"How old is that?" I asked curiously.

He waved me off, "I've lost count honestly. It doesn't matter. What's important is that you _do_ remember being reincarnated."

I frowned at him, "How do you know?"

Kapono gave a sad look at me, "Well, it's not every day you see a five-year-old writing to people who they shouldn't know on a Floating Lantern. Considering my own condition, I would know a person who's grieving and who has a life they left behind."

While the statement was enough to make my heart fall into the pit of my stomach, I sighed at that. "Yeah, you're right."

There was a quiet three minutes before I questioned, "Kapono, 'when' are you from?"

The man looks toward the sea where the other hundreds of spirits were above the Floating Lanterns as if they were taking the messages to carry them over to the dead. "The last few years of my life was during the time when Duel Monsters was booming everywhere, a rough estimate is after the Kaiba Corp Grand Prix Tournament, but before duel academies became a thing. There was a large Earthquake where I lived and I died then."

Kapono then turned to me, "What about you?"

I was silent for a long time.

Kapono existed in this world. He was a reincarnation of this world. Me? I was an alien if anything. I never belonged in this history of all things. The world where I came from had _created_ the whole history of what reality I was living in now. I went for the best answer.

"I don't know," I said with conviction, and when he raised an eyebrow, I continued, "All I know is that I did play Duel Monsters with friends, but I don't remember the solid vision or Duel Disks being used in tournaments. And how I died… I'd rather not talk about it."

Half-truths were better than lies. I just wasn't specific in where my world existed, holograms were still in its infancy but the methods of summoning monsters was _far_ ahead.

He was actually surprised by my answer but made an estimate, "Then most likely you died in an age where the Duelist Kingdom Tournament hadn't started yet. As for how you died, is your business."

His guess was far off from the truth, but I decided to let him come to his own conclusions.

"So, now what?" I asked again, diverting his attention away from 'when and where' I was really from.

"Well," Kapono started, "As a Pathfinder myself, I'll need to tell you that what it means to be one. So far, from what you know, that we're usually a reincarnation of a former past life, and you either remember your past life or don't remember it at all. With me so far?"

I nod.

"Good. Now we get to the specifics," he motioned, "Know that there are two types of Pathfinders. One is a normal one, like me. Then there are Chosen Pathfinders, who are marked by either deities or strong spirits like you. For both cases, they either remember or don't remember at all of their past life."

He then describes what a Pathfinder does. Essentially, Pathfinders were people who are blessed as 'guides' of the human race but could either lead it to evolution or ruin, depending on what they did.

Kapono actually stated that Pegasus, the creator of Duel Monsters was a Chosen Pathfinder. The creator of Duel Monsters in this world didn't remember his past life, but his role was to create the game itself and set the foundations of the future where the spirits would later be connected to the cards. Kapono clearly stated that even if Pegasus wasn't a Millennium Item holder anymore, his destiny as a Pathfinder never stopped him from making an impact on history.

He even went to explain another example that Seto Kaiba, who while ignored his calling as someone who was meant to be a Millennium Item user because of his previous reincarnation, still gravitated to Blue Eyes White Dragon, later was responsible for the creation of Duel Academies, and the concept of Turbo Dueling.

In essence, I think Yusei in the future would be one too, as in the anime after everything was over and not a Signer anymore, he was a scientist that created the program Fortune so any accident like the Zero Reverse incident would never happen in the future. There was nothing else said about him after the time skip, but I think the writers left it open to show a person with potential like him could have reached any sort of goal.

Chosen Pathfinders, in conclusion, were people who were meant to affect history itself in a large way. It made me think twice about what path I was going to choose later. Yet, I kept that information stored away in my mind and kept listening to Grandma Hokulani's son.

Meanwhile, Normal Pathfinders while not chosen specifically, were people who had the influence in the world but are present at the right time and place before/after events that would change history. Kapono described that while nothing extra ordinary in comparison to the Chosen Pathfinders, they held important roles too. They could be as simple as being the person to pass on a duel monster card to its rightful owner, pass important artifacts to their intended chosen, and to creating companies that would further push the boundaries of human evolution.

I had the feeling that Sugoroku Muto, Yugi's grandfather, was one too. Yugi's deck originally belonged to his grandfather, the Millennium Puzzle was given to Yugi by him, and finally, he was a reincarnation of the Pharoah's adviser too. He never made an impact on the history itself (other than being an infamous Gambler in his youth), but he was there at all the right moments so Atem without his memories would eventually meet Yugi Muto.

All in all, the normal Pathfinders had roles just as important to the ones who were chosen, and still remained behind the larger stage so to speak.

Okay, so everything was connected… that was fine and dandy, but as a Yu-Gi-Oh fan that may have spent too long going through wild theories, far too numerous Youtube discussion videos and forum posts, I needed some confirmation.

"Kapono?"

"Yes, Aria?"

"Why does everything have to be resolved through Dueling?" I asked bluntly. "I mean, I don't want to give the bad guys any ideas, but wouldn't it be easier to get rid of the opposing side if say someone with Seer powers saw something bad would happen and get rid of enemies with real weapons?"

Kapono looked at me in amusement before he chuckled at my question, "I had the same question as you did back then. While technically true that could be done, it's the consequences of _trying_ to or even _doing_ that has… consequences leading to ramifications that's best left alone."

I gave him an honest confused look. Because seriously, if someone made an Assassin's Creed Brotherhood and killed the opposing side left and right without getting caught, there wouldn't have been the _need_ to duel in the first place, right? Like, say Paradox from the 10th Anniversary movie killed Pegasus further in the past when he had _no_ opposition, hell, no one to duel him as the duel disk or hell the duel arena hadn't been created at all. Or to put it bluntly, kill the creator while the guy was in diapers; it would have been really easy.

So, why go through the hassle of Dueling when there were straightforward methods?

"Trust me, Aria," Kapono sighed, "It's been done before."

 _Really?_

"The story goes that a person, who has someone they care for has a duel in the future," he started to tell his story, "Fearing their loved one losing to that person in a duel, he made an attempt to murder the opposition side."

Noticing his tone, I'd say it ended in failure.

"So the guy attempts to kill the opposing side, but what happens instead, is that someone close to him that had nothing to do with the duel dies instead," Kapono said seriously. He then added, "...and that's while he made the attempt."

That… totally sucked.

"So he got cursed?" I asked for clarification.

Kapono shook his head, "Put your head in the mindset of Hawaiian culture as my mother told you. What's the most important belief?"

"That there's no such thing in the supernatural. The spirits are as natural as we are," I said word for word.

"Right. And as I hate to admit it, dueling or having a spirit on your side _to fight for your beliefs_ is the _true rule_ of combat or changing history in this world," Kapono emphasized. "I've learned from other Pathfinders during my travels that every Duel Monster Spirit can have an effect on historical events when they're working together with a strong spirited human. Like for example Hitler, how was he able to kill so many people? It's stated in records that he had something to do with 'the occult'. Unfortunately, the real answer was that he was making soul sacrifices to a duel monster spirit."

What?! So in this world, all the worst things that happened in history was because a duel monster spirit involved? _Mind Blown!_

"I could go on and on, like the murderer from the assassination of John F. Kennedy, to peace talkers such as Martin Luther King Jr. made their impact with a strong spirit supporting them with their historical tragedy or triumph," Kapono noted out, "but we'll be here all night. All you need to know is that, if you don't follow the rules, you're penalized, this world would just find a way to stop you somehow. You _can't_ ruin that balance unless you want to deal with the _worst_ outcomes."

Well, that surely answers why Paradox made an effort to steal Yusei's Stardust Dragon, along with the Johan/Jesse's Rainbow Dragon as well as Ryo/Zane's Cyber End Dragon to change the past. He needed their 'spirit influence' to change the past even if it was by forcefully controlling them. The part where Paradox couldn't go further into the past creeped me out. If the "universe" didn't want it, it set up opponents for you. Considering that meant the _three best duelists of their era_ , and he was even crazy enough to duel all three of them at once… Paradox just never stood a chance. Poor sod.

Still, it made sense that Iliaster's Four Stars of Destruction weren't able to do much in future because they didn't have the connections to the spirits before. It was kind of hinted in GX that just because you summoned a monster from a deck that was owned by someone else, you wouldn't get the same results because the deck wouldn't resonate well with you. Some spirits were very specific when partnered with a human. So even if Z-One had summoned Shooting Star Dragon in the future, he didn't have Yusei's spirit and heart, which would have led to Stardust showing up for Z-One due to summoning conditions only. Yet, I guess they later took on the Meklords on their side and Z-One would wield the Timelords to save the new timeline. In a way, I did feel sorry for them in losing their world, but they didn't have to be asses to trigger the Zero Reverse faster killing more people in the process than in their original timeline while _still_ having plans to murder _more_ people by dropping the Ark Cradle on top of a city.

In the end, that's what the Four Stars of Destruction did, right? They triggered the Zero Reverse without the support of the spirits that lived in the era. The consequences of their actions, in the end, was that they never saw the future they wanted to see with their own eyes. Tragic, much? Yeah, it was.

Was I going to try and save them? No, I wasn't. The moment that the Zero Reverse happened, they had their fates sealed, their decision was made. I wasn't a saint; for all the tragedies that they caused, I didn't have the heart to forgive them that easily. Not when their actions caused so much pain for so many people. However, rather than focusing on revenge, I wanted to help heal what was in the aftermath. If there was so much negativity in the future that they had, maybe there was a way to do the opposite.

"Aria?"

"Yes?" I answered Kapono, back to reality.

"I hope I didn't just inspire a 5-year-old blond girl to destroy this universe," he commented dryly.

I shook my head in laughter, "No, but I think I understand how everything works now. Thank you."

Kapono snorted. "That's fine by me." He then looked at my dragon that had calmed down throughout his and his mother's explanations. "So I'm guessing this is the dragon that the Crimson Dragon was going to give to the previous Star Pathfinder. You mentioned that its name is Clear Wing?"

"Her full name is Clear Wing Synchro Dragon actually," I corrected him.

Grandma Hokulani observed my dragon before looking at her owl. "It seems like you haven't received her physical card yet. Clear Wing Synchro Dragon seems slightly transparent than my owl or my son's shark spirit."

"I haven't," I agreed. "I'm not sure as to how or when I'll receive it."

"Synchro summoning is a very recent method of summoning being introduced in duel monsters, just a little older than you are," the elder lady informed me nodding all the same. "It may take time, but eventually you'll meet her card in physical form some day. The fact she showed herself to you and you know her name shows that Clear Wing Synchro Dragon is your intended duel monster spirit."

"Grandma Hokulani?" I inquired, as something occurred to me.

"Yes, Aria, dear?"

"Other than my _Mana_ , how were you able to know that I have a duel monster spirit?"

She smiled sweetly, "I have mentioned that you that to have a strong spirit with _Mana_ , family roots are just as important. Your father's white magician duel monster spirit likes to hover around you often. You don't always see it, but it has the same protectiveness personality as your father."

I blinked, "Eh? You mean Performapal Sky Magician? I think I saw him move after the duel with Albert on my 3rd birthday, but wasn't sure; I thought I was seeing things."

"Well, there you go," Grandma Hokulani pointed out. "I, like your father, are not Pathfinders. I am in tune with my spirit as it is part of my role as a storyteller to pass on the legends to keep them alive. Your father, on the other hand, has manifested his spirit for being the duelist that resonates best with Performapal Sky Magician. It isn't odd to see it pass on to his children."

Now that she said that, I wondered if my brothers had duel monster spirits of their own.

This time it's Kapono who waves his hand getting both my attention and his mother's, "I'd like to make a confession."

Grandma Hokulani crosses her arms again with a huff, "Does triggering Aria's dragon to defend her is part of your confession?"

"Yes."

Clear Wing doesn't move from its place but there was emotion bubbling up from the back of my mind that indicated she was curious about what this 'puny human' wanted to say.

Those were my dragon's thoughts, not mine.

Kapono then looks at Clear Wing in the eyes bravely and declared, "I, Kapono, swear on my soul that I will not hurt your human partner or I shall suffer the consequences as any Pathfinder who disobeys the True Rules of the Spirits."

There was an odd sensation that rippled in the air as if something bad would happen to him if he did break that promise. I wondered if it was this world's version of a magical unbreakable oath of sorts. The thing is, it worked, and where Clear Wing's fingers blocked the three of us on the boat was lifted away. My dragon seemed to be relaxed but kept close to me.

This time he grabbed his side bag and opened what seemed to be a deck tin. While he was taking out the cards on top, Kapono confessed, "As you know, I travel around the world, so you could say I pass by other Pathfinders. I thought something was up when they gave me certain cards and not soon after I was given a dream to be here with my mother on the night of the Floating Lanterns Ceremony."

"Certain cards?" I had a feeling this was something game-changing.

At the bottom of his tin, Kapono showed me the elusive cards.

And there they were, the very cards that escaped the Zero Reverse: Black Rose Dragon, Red Dragon Archfiend, and Stardust Dragon.

 _Seeing_ but still _not_ believing. Wasn't this _too early_ in the timeline?

On second thought, there was also a blank white Synchro card among them.

"By your expression, are these the Signer Dragons?" Kapono asked dumbly at my shocked face.

I nodded mutely. I could even feel the cards humming with power as I was near them as the Star Pathfinder.

Kapono laughed weakly. "I… I never thought in my life I'd be a Pathfinder in a role like this."

' _Me and you, buddy. Me and you,'_ I agreed internally throwing grammar out the window, especially when faced something jaw-dropping like this.

It's Grandma Hokulani who breaks the stiffening atmosphere, "So, Kapono, what must she do now?"

Kapono seemed contemplative, "I've been told that the person who these cards are supposed to meet could take them, or I would travel again and the cards will pass on to find their owners anyway as their destiny should be."

Me? Take the Signer Dragon cards?

I knew all too well that in the anime that Rex Goodwin spread them to the public so they would eventually be owned by their Signers. If I didn't do anything, they'd eventually end up where they should be. While a part of me was scared of changing the timeline, I kept questioning why were they here in front of me out of all places when I was 5 years old. It made me remember the time when the Crimson Dragon told me I was a catalyst for just existing…

…but was that really what I wanted?

Just being here for the sake of existing?

 _No._

I was alive.

And if I was truly alive, I'd make my own choices, and start changing history from there.

This time, I chose to be more assertive with my choices.

I closed my eyes and smiled as the wind blew my hair softly.

 _No regrets._

"Kapono, I'll gladly receive all the cards that you've traveled so far with," I opened my eyes this time, giving him a confident look that I made my decision.

Kapono while astonished at first, then smiled, "Then they are yours until you deem fit to pass them to their Signers."

When he passed the sleeved cards to my hands, my mark flared up. I was shocked to see that specific marks had lightened up red against my normal white mark, the Wings, the back Claw, the Tail, and what shocked me further was _the Heart_. Then, this blank card was supposed to be Life Stream Dragon?! That card didn't show up until nearly at the end of the series! However, the kicker, was when all of us heard _roars._

The three of us humans looked up, only to see all the dragons in the cards I held in my hands take spiritual form hovering above us.

If seeing Clear Wing Synchro Dragon was amazing, seeing it along with Stardust Dragon, Red Dragon Archfiend, Black Rose Dragon, and Life Stream Dragon were awe inspiring. At first, the dragons only shift their glances to one another as if they were greeting each other and haven't seen each other for a long time. After, by Stardust's roar which sounded like an invitation, it flapped its wings and flew. The other dragons roared too, and including my own dragon followed them to fly in the night sky.

I couldn't help but grin at them. It was like a long-awaited reunion happened among the dragons. They flew in single file before spreading out and danced through the air with acrobatics. Stardust and Clear Wing were spreading sparkles wherever they flew, as the others were enjoying flying among the other spirits during the ceremony.

"My, my, they're sure are happy to see each other if they're flying like that," Grandma Hokulani commented but smiling all the same.

Kapono was smirking at the sky following their flight, "I would be too if I hadn't seen my friends in 5000 years." He then looked at me and then the blank card. "I'm surprised the blank one has a dragon too."

I shrugged at him, "Same here; but I think it's because Life Stream Dragon needs another card to complete his form."

"Life Stream Dragon, eh?" Kapono shook his head in amusement. "You really are the Star Pathfinder to know his name after you received that card."

I didn't say anything as I went through the cards. I noticed the signs of them being the Secret Ultra Rare rarity cards. Somehow, I wasn't surprised, as they were the only copies on the planet. A feeling of sadness swept through me when I remembered that these were the very cards that Dr. Fudo, Yusei's father, sacrificed his life for during the Zero Reverse. I made a promise that I'd get them to everyone as soon as possible given the chance. Finally, I studied the still blank card in my hand where Life Stream Dragon should be. I wonder if that meant I needed to get this to Lua. Then there were still two missing dragons left. They would have to wait for later. Plus, I still had my own dragon card to look for, wherever she truly was.

"Aria," Grandma Hokulani walked over to me and put her hand on my shoulders, "You carry a heavy burden on you. Just know if you are in need of anything, my doors are always opened to you. It's the least I can do."

I was so touched by her kindness I only ended up hugging her and saying thank you repeatedly.

For the first time in a long while, I finally felt that I wasn't fighting alone in this bizarre world based on a trading card game.

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* * *

 _ **To Be Continued…**_

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 _ **Au Notes:**_ Aaand cuuut! To anyone who is native Hawaiian, I mean no disrespect by making my head canon YGO theory based on the Hawaiian culture. I'm just a writer making this for fun, and for world building aspects, it just fitted in with YGO's lore of how for Egyptian duel monsters have Ka (duel monster spirits) and Ba (as life force of LP). So for the Hawaiian equivalent I chose Akua (great spirit) and Mana (life force, not to be confused with Dark Magician Girl :P ).

So yeah, in my head canon it's not that simple to just kill the opposition without dueling, as there are rules of the universe in place. xD You don't duel, it doesn't solve the problem. You kill and bypass the rules, you lose anyway in another form. I've always wanted to make a theory that made sense of the Bonds Beyond Time movie, and voila! xD xD xD

Grandma Hokulani and Kapono are my OCs and will only be supporting characters. Hokulani is a Hawaiian name which roughly translates to 'heavenly star' and Kapono roughly translates to 'the good/moral one'.

Also, while we're not quite there yet with the dueling yet, suggestions are still open to new deck/archetypes/engines that you think can fit in the era of Tribute/Ritual/Fusion/Synchro summoning. Let me know!

Thanks for reading! Don't hesitate to drop a review, favorite, follow, and have an amazing day!


	4. The Gears Start to Rotate

**The Star Pathfinder and the Future Dragon**

 **AU Notes:** Just stating that while I use the Japanese names in the sub version, I don't plan to use Japanese suffixes since I'm writing in English. Same goes for name ordering. So first name, then last name. I just want to get that out of the way.

 **Thanks to** Kami no Kage-Sama, Umbra99, Zaconator and Zackis, Phoenix Cristal Rosea, Castlewood, and Citylover96 for the favs!

 **Thanks to** Lulumo, tsukiyomi83, mitchn, belikethewind, il2swim57, korvik93, and gundam 09 for the follows!

 **Thanks to** mugetsu715, Torchvirgo, Syafiq, LenyaDate and crescent the eclipse favs and follows!

 **Thanks for the reviews: Umbra99 (two to boot! =D),** **il2Swim57, Lulumo,** **Ignis1210 & Guest** **!**

 **Thanks to gundam 09 and Umbra99 for the Author follows!**

 **Thanks to Citylover96 for the follow, fav, Author follow and Author fav!**

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 **To Umbra99:** Thanks for taking the time to write out your review. Reading your feedback is highly appreciated. =) I hope that as I move forward writing this it'll be something the 5D's section will be proud of. You're welcome. I'm actually building up my lore from there. Hope you keep reading and tell me what you think as the story progresses!

 **To il2Swim27** : You're welcome! I hope to continue making a great story. Also, connecting the world a bit more than the anime with the lore I have is one of the goals in this story, as well as its world building. The WRGP is an international event after all. Thank you for the deck recommendations. One of them makes an appearance in this chapter, but not in the way you expect it. ;)

 **To Lulumo:** How to explain it? There are still murders, deaths by other causes such as disease, etc. However, with a support of a spirit (through a duel or not), you're more guaranteed to make an impact on history. My references to famous figures just shows that if a spirit supports you without you knowing, they could still impact on history regardless (Hitler/JFK's murder/Martin Luther Jr). However, if a person is exclusively dealing with Duel Monster spirits and duels, the penalty is steep if they bypass the duel completely. No worries though, the lore will be sprinkled in through chapters.

 **To** **Ignis1210 & Guest:** Noted. I'll see what I can do. :) Feel free to share deck profiles though! I haven't seen mixed deck of vechroids and speedroids well enough to know the combos.

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Chapter 4 is up! Took longer than expected because the research involved.

Enjoy!

* * *

 _ **Chapter 4: The Gears Start to Rotate**_

* * *

" _You should always know when you're shifiting gears in life._

 _You should leave the era; it should never leave you." - Leontyne Price_

* * *

The sun reflected on the light of the Utopia City of Neo Domino City that was covered in December snow.

A man in a gray suit with a white formal undershirt stood in his newly furnished office of the Security Building that loomed overlooking the metropolis. His eyes gazed at the perfection that was the high rise buildings that have recovered from the Zero Reverse, but it would then shift to Satellite, a hollow empty shell that he departed from for good. It was an ugly scar that he wanted to erase from the surface of the Earth. And yet, there were important things that he had to preserve, especially where it could provide the optimum location of a battlefield when the coming war of the Signers against the Dark Signers would take place in the next 13 years.

Well, soon to be 12 years by the end of this month that would eventually mark the calendar to a new year.

The man's thoughts were interrupted as someone had knocked on his door.

"Come in," the man replied.

A security executive came in the door, "Sorry to bother you, Mr. Rex Goodwin, Sir."

"Report."

"As you requested, we've been searching records as to where those three Dragon cards you've requested to monitor. However..."

Rex raised a brow at his subordinate's hesitation, "Did something happen?"

The other man sighed, "Quite the opposite, Sir. For all we know is that the three cards had been given off or sold to different people at the beginning of March. We've completely lost all track all three since then. It's now December, but we have no data or records that anyone has used them in any duels with duel disks. There has been no activity for Black Rose Dragon, Red Archfiend Dragon, and Stardust Dragon."

"What of arena duels?" the Head of Security asked as he closed his eyes.

"Also with zero results, Sir," the other replied. "It's very unusual, normally Synchro cards with the powerful effects that the dragons have wouldn't be ignored by any duelist to use."

The man turned to his subordinate. "Keep an eye if they do resurface. For all we know, they might be in hands of collectors rather than duelists. On second thought– I want you to keep an eye on the auction market to the black market. See to it they are found again."

"Sir!"

Once the other man left the room, Rex Goodwin breathed out a sigh.

The situation was mysterious at best but could be problematic in the future if it persisted at worse. While he had faith that the Signer Dragons will eventually find their Signers, he still felt responsible that the cards kept moving and made note of who owned the cards. If the cards were owned by collectors, that could hinder the movement of the Signer Dragons to find their chosen ones.

Still, for the Signer Dragons to stay silent like this was strange.

Not when they had been actively played, moving from one hand to another in the last four years, dismissing unworthy duelists in their wake.

Did the Crimson Dragon initiate this, or was it caused by something else?

 _How curious._

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* * *

"... _May your days be merry and bright~ And May all your_ _Christmases_ _be white~"_

As the Christmas song ended with my violin with Dad's accompaniment piano, everyone who sung the song along with us went into applause and cheers. My face was flushed in heat from all the Christmas songs and carols we went through that Christmas afternoon, but I was grinning from ear to ear that I was finally playing in full swing with vibratos and was free to sing the song through my beloved instrument like in the previous life I had before. The tone quality was not there yet, at least until I get to a full-sized violin. It still made very minor squeaks when I tried the higher pitched notes since a child's violin usually didn't have the same sort of quality invested in adult sized versions. It seemed I'll just have to wait a few more years then.

"That was wonderful, Aria!" the far older man but a copy of my father picked me up form my wheelchair and twirled me into the air.

I yelped, "Grandpa! Put me down! Too high! Too high!"

I was still holding my violin in my left hand and my bow in my right. The last thing I wanted to do was to drop them down. If there was something I wasn't fond of in the past and present life, it was anxiety when it came to heights. Being stuck to a wheelchair on not on my own legs had made it worse.

Grandpa Issac did so quickly and carefully seated me back in my wheelchair. "Sorry there, Aria! But Grandpa's just proud of you! At five years old you're already playing so well!"

A hand swatted at his head.

"Ack! Margret!"

Cue my real grandmother, who sighed was looking less thrilled with my grandfather for his stunt. "If you keep scaring her like that she won't be playing as well as she'd like to," she scoffed. Grandma Margret turned to me with an apologetic look, "Forgive your grandpa, he goes overboard when he gets excited. I wished it wasn't inherited onward to your father."

"Oi!" my father and grandpa protested in unison.

I giggled at them, but still answered my grandmother, "It's okay. As long as mom's violin is safe, it's okay." I tenderly held it close to me.

Grandma nodded in satisfaction as she patted my head, "Good girl. Smart like your mother and grandmother. I'm just so glad that your brothers were blessed with her intelligence and common sense too."

I risked a glance at both my father, Brian Hughes, and grandfather, Issac Hughes comically had dark clouds over their heads all doom and gloom sitting on the chairs to the side of the recreation area thanks to Grandma's jabs. The rest of what was part of Dad's family were laughing at their antics, including my brothers. It was the first time the whole of Dad's family really got together again for Christmas. Rather than freeze and go to Europe where my grandparents lived, it was decided the whole family on my dad's side would all go to Hawaii in search of warmer weather. Hence, why we were staying at a large compound villa that housed everyone from Christmas till New Years. We were currently using the rec hall that was in the middle of the villa compound.

Was it weird living like in an anime slash pop culture trope-like world?

You betcha.

If I had to describe how my dad's family was like, well, the apt words would be anti-meta. Not in the meaning as when Duel Monsters game was involved per say, but in how they led their lives. It was kind of hard to reassure myself that Dad's family was actually really well off, especially when for the most part they didn't dress the part or act like the stereotypical super elite when we were getting together right now. For people being so rich, everyone stuck with casual clothing without any indications they came from famous brands or anything.

In fact, it was Grandpa Issac's challenge to all of us (his whole extended family) to troll other people that didn't know us well enough wouldn't give a second glance or figured that we'd come from the 2% of the extremely privileged. The less we stand out in public as the rich, the better. If possible, if you had a sort of 2nd identity that was encouraged. The fewer people publicly knew they were behind the companies that primarily supported aid and funds for those who need help, it was celebrated. Lastly, the people who were truly willing to forge friendships with us were highly valued than those made from business ventures.

Don't let that fool you though, everything else that money could buy and considered an asset was free game as long as it was discreet. I had been wondering why all this time despite Eugene and Russel went to public schools, they also had private tutors coming into the house to teach them. At first, I had thought that it was Dad being fair to the rest of my brothers–seeing as I had private tutors and Albert was in the best Duel Academy in Hawaii–but it wasn't the case. If my brothers had a chance to further their education on something they were good at, Dad didn't want to leave that to chance and further pushed them to be better.

Seems like I may have hugely underestimated what Dad was capable of financially. Then again, I was five, he probably didn't think I was trying to gauge how well we were off. Maybe I'll ask when I'm older. And even then, he still gave his A game where he worked at the show theater. Still, props to him for raising his kids as normal as possible when it was easier to let the kids have nannies or live by themselves… like Lua and Luca.

Man, I was so lucky Dad wasn't like their parents in the anime.

Anyways, to make the introductions of Dad's big family short, I suppose I can give you a super condensed rundown. As I've mentioned before, Dad is the youngest out of seven. From the eldest to the youngest, my Dad's siblings were Uncle Fredrick, Uncle Joshua, Aunt Matilda, Aunt Genny, Uncle Jacob, and Aunt Nanna.

Out of the siblings, Uncle Joshua, Aunt Matilda, and Uncle Jacob weren't married and claimed they were married to their work. Uncle Joshua was Vlogger for travel vlogging, Aunt Matilda owned a couple of orphanages in Eastern Europe, and Uncle Jacob was a researcher that focused on health in Africa. Aunt Genny and Aunt Nanna although were happily married (which I don't remember who their husbands names were), had opted not to have kids, as they, like Aunt Matilda, had their own companies that dealt with helping others (which I hadn't heard what specifically) in Asia and South America respectively.

So, yeah, that pretty much left Uncle Fredrick and my Dad who had kids. As for my only cousins, there was Anthony who's fifteen and Christine at twelve years old. It's also why my grandparents were thrilled in this Christmas get-together. After we went to the local church in the morning, we were having our own family celebration in the afternoon. Grandpa Issac and Grandma Margret had made it their mission supply all of my brothers and me with presents. Or perhaps the cruder term would be to spoil their grandchildren that they haven't seen in the past four years or so. Since Anthony and Christine were with them every year they had opened their presents privately and were more curious about what we got.

For Russel who was now 8 years old, they gave him a reasonably sized camera that took photos and videos as well as a couple of books on photography and filming. His hologram tablet was filled with camera and video tutorials. Eugene now at 10 years old, was gifted with an assortment of musical books, a hologram tablet filled with videos and songs of the most famous performances up-to-date.

Now you might be wondering what hologram tablets were. Well, all I can say is that they're the same devices that the 5D's characters use to check news, use the internet, and all that jazz. Like the time where the 5D's crew saw the article in the 10th movie that history was distorted because of Stardust Dragon showing up in the past. Considering I was 5 years old, this most likely was an older version before the 5D's one.

As for Albert… Knowing that he was a duel academy student and a gifted one at twelve years old, my grandparents had bought him a couple of boxes of booster packs and leather deck cases that one was for storing 400 sleeved cards and another 80 sleeved card holder for day-to-day travel. I gotta say, I was envious at Albert at first, but when he said he was willing to share cards he didn't need, I was happy for his kindness.

For me, Grandma had given me leveled violin books that followed through from a beginners level to advanced and a few pop music songbooks. I was elated that meant I had access to more challenging songs and other types of musical pieces that I gave her a long hug. However, Grandpa Issac's present was the one I wasn't expecting at 5 years old. As for someone who's living in the Yu-Gi-Oh world, it was something I sorely needed.

It was a Duel Disk.

As it wasn't made in Hawaii or it came from Neo Domino City, it had a different design. The hologram projector device was smaller on the arm as it was for kids but would still fit the standard sized cards, while the deck shuffler was above the wrist area. Similar to Albert's design, it arm latch was more like a watch band. It was also a lot more compact than what my brother had or what was the standard Neo Domino City one and had a square folded design for the card slots. When I observed further, I had to say it was like a D-Pad in YGO Zexal, but it wasn't really an all-in-one device where it could function as a tablet or computer. It got bonus points for being sky blue, my favorite color.

My reaction?

I squealed out loud as when I first got my mother's childhood violin and thanked my grandpa profusely, which may have caused Grandpa Issac's proud ego through the roof. Grandma Margret was not amused at first, but once I told her that I really wanted to be a violinist too and I'll start going through her books as soon as possible, she seemed happier. Dad and my brothers were happy for me, but it was Uncle Joshua's reaction was what surprised me the most.

"How about a duel after dinner with me?" He smiled at me pointing at himself with a wink. "You and your brothers can open those packs and see what's good, make a deck, and then we can duel."

I looked up at Dad eagerly for permission.

"Knock yourself out, Aria," Dad laughed ushered me with his hand.

I grinned at him. "Thanks, Dad!"

Grandpa Issac now seemed excited as he rubbed his chin, "Hey, anyone else wants to duel? I haven't dueled in while."

"I'll take you on, Dad!" Uncle Jacob raised his hand and pointed to Grandpa, rising to the challenge.

Aunt Matilda raised hers as well in a calmer manner, "Count me in. I'm not letting my niece take part in the family duel alone. Girls have to stick together."

From then on, it got pretty crazy that most of my family were hyping up for a duel. Crazy enough that there was actually a family tradition for it. Grandma Margret was explaining this year's rules that depending on who many people wanted to duel, it would be a one on one round but who you dueled was depended on a raffle. It wasn't a tournament to see who was the best, but a get-together and having fun by dueling. The exception to Grandma's rule was for Uncle Joshua and me, as Uncle Joshua asked on a personal one on one duel before it was decided to do the duel event. Then there was Uncle Fredrick who was writing down the names of everyone who wanted to participate like as if a demanding crowd was the most common thing in the world.

I looked at my Dad as his side of the family were getting pumped up. "Dad, is this normal?"

"Yes, it is sweetheart," Dad chuckled. "But the more I love them for it. What do you think?"

"I think it's cool," I said truthfully. It really was. That meant I could have an idea what cards were around. Especially my family was most likely the people who had a lot of cash to spare. Or would they have some weird archetypes or rogue decks? Honestly, the curiosity was thrilling. I then asked Dad back, "Are you going to duel, Dad?"

Dad smirked and winked at me similarly like his older brother did, "Of course, I am! A duel is a performance after all. It's a performer's duty to entertain the crowd and hope that our feelings reach them."

We were both interrupted by Grandma Margret as she clapped to get everyone's attention. "Alright, everyone. We're starting our duels at dinner time, so now it's 2 o'clock in the afternoon. Take a break, prepare your decks, and everyone will meet here again."

Both Dad and I were soon joined by Albert, Russel, and Eugene, who then as a family we departed and said our goodbyes until dinner so we could go back to our villa. We all ended up at the kitchen table as Albert was going through his booster packs. Russel, Eugene and I were watching what cards he pulled as Dad on the other side of the kitchen, was making coffee.

As far as I was concerned, the cards that Albert pulled out were a mixed bag of what I knew in my reality were old and new cards alike. Old as in when the cards in GX were still a thing and new to some that I spotted were part of the new meta. To me, who had an idea what card that belonged in which YGO era it was confusing and comforting at the same time. Confusing since some monster cards of the same archetype that showed up in booster packs weren't fixed to a particular list like they did in my past life; comforting in the sense that I recognized them at a glance of their artwork although some hadn't been er rated like they had in my world which meant their effects could be taken advantage of (abused).

Anyhow…

It's been about six months since the night I was given the details of being the Star Pathfinder. My Mark of the Dragon had disappeared once more after the Floating Lantern Ceremony ended, which Grandma Hokulani remarked that this perhaps was the Crimson Dragon's way of keeping me hidden to avoid of making me a target of its enemies so I didn't end up dead like the previous Star Pathfinder. In a way, that made me wonder that perhaps it was also why Yusei's Tail mark kept of disappearing and reappearing in the anime. And even then, it would also make sense that Crow was never a target of the Dark Signers since he had no indications of having a mark at all.

While I do regularly see Grandma Hokulani, the last time I saw Kapono was two months ago. He was a total nomad moving from one place to another, but that was where he communicated with the other Pathfinders on the state of the world. Kapono mentioned that while they did set the time and date through either by email and phone, everything Duel Monster spirit information related was spoken in person. It may seem troublesome, but Kapono had explained that some sensitive topics were better off said in person than through technology. With technology, there was a chance to be hacked or traced.

In a way, I certainly agreed.

As Albert finished choosing with the cards he got, I was then filtering through the piles of cards that he deemed 'for later use' so I could find cards that may help me duel Uncle Joshua tonight. On the kitchen table, was my tin of cards that I currently own. The tin was a byproduct of one of Grandma Hokulani's art classes of refurbishing a decent sized old biscuit tin into a tin to store accessories or whatever you wanted. I purposely painted it with light blue and pastel pink with floral patterns to stave off my brothers from ever thinking of looking into it because it was 'too girly'. The strategy worked, as even my father rarely touched it unless I asked him to help me to bring it to me.

I wasn't a girly girl–didn't mind girly things either–but if it was able to keep people away; I was going to take advantage of it.

It wasn't the best security for the Signer Dragon cards, but it was the best I could do to hide them from my family.

You see, I deliberately had made a "mat" within the tin with pink flannel cloth stuck with super glue to the bottom, but then made another one that covered it so Stardust Dragon, Red Archfiend Dragon, Black Rose Dragon, and the blank card were hidden in between the two cloths. To make it more unattractive, on top of the flannel that hid the cards, I had put what was a completely non-sleeved 'dummy card piles' of very old DM era and not so useful cards of what was expected of a kid that was still learning about Duel Monsters. I totally stole the idea of having a 'dummy deck' from Yusaku, the main protagonist of VRAINS, and I was happy to do so. The card effects of Signer Dragons were crazy powerful compared to what I had seen in Albert's Duel Academy catalog list. I was sure it would attract the attention of anyone, including my family.

Since my family doesn't know I own them, it was the best excuse to not use them at all.

Using them in a match/duel would catch unnecessary attention, especially if the information was scanned through a duel disk of all things. I mean, Seto Kaiba during Battle City used its tracing feature to search for the Egyptian God Cards, and as far as I know this era had better technology. In the 5D's anime, I know Rex Goodwin was stuck for a time in Satellite, but it has nearly been six years… and I had a feeling he was already somewhere working for Sector Security. Especially if he was already in contact with Iliaster and their links were spread out throughout the world. Since an Iliaster sect was behind Rex Goodwin and he knew of the Crimson Dragon, I had no doubts they might be aware of how to get the support of duel monster spirits on their side. Duel monsters weren't always inherently good, some like that supported Yami Bakura wasn't above killing for their master. The last thing I wanted was for them to murder Pathfinders like Kapono or worse, get my family killed as they did with Sherry Le Blanc's parents because they detected I had the Dragon Signer Cards.

Not happening.

I was going to move on with my life but would try and seek any opportunity I could get if I was ever given the chance to meet with the Signers. If possible, my goal was to give them their Signer Dragon cards directly. I wasn't sure how it would happen, but I did pray to the Crimson Dragon the deity would lead me to them somehow, and at the same time, that no harm came to my family. Now that I knew I had an extended family, I wasn't going to take risks that could be avoided.

"Aria? How's your deck coming along?" Albert asked me, as he had momentarily stopped sifting through his own deck.

I shrugged, "I have monsters, but not all of them work well together. I think I'll have Spells and Traps to help."

Albert gave me a concerned look, "Aria, I think you should try a theme or base your deck on a strategy… at least until you find an archetype that you like or something."

"It's okay, Albert," I tried to calm him down, "I'll just have to try and win with what I have."

Albert sighed. "All right, if you say so."

As I was back to busy sifting through cards, he asked how my other two brothers were progressing with their own decks.

Speaking of monster cards… I was having _problems_ with those.

You see, every normal person could pick up a card and use Duel Monster cards as a 'tool'. A Chosen Duelist, could do the same, use the cards as if they were a part of them, and win the favor of the spirits to fight for their beliefs. For Pathfinders, it was a lot more complicated than that. It's mainly because Pathfinders were people that Duel Monster Spirits like to resonate with to find their 'intended duelist'. This meant cards that I may find useful or crazy strong would probably use me as a means of transport to get to their intended duelist. Hence, I haven't found any cards yet that were giving me a sign that I was compatible with them.

And they were part of a crazy strong deck too.

It was one particular day that I was opening a random booster pack that I found two Melodious monsters. Yeah, the same ones that Yuzu/Zuzu played in Arc-V.

One of the monsters was _**Aria the Melodious Diva (1600/1200)**_ , which was ironic as we have the same name. The second, was the strong monster I told you about, was the fusion monster _**Bloom Diva the Melodious Choir (1000/2000).**_ It's an infamous card that's indestructible by card effects and when it battles a monster with higher attack power, your opponent would get the burn damage instead. Bloom Diva is immune to battle damage/card effect LP damage. Plus, if the attacked monster was an extra deck/special summoned monster, it would be destroyed to boot. Together with the right support cards made those two Melodious cards indestructible. As someone who's a musician, other than their designs, I liked how they used musical terms and gave it form into a deck. Especially when in some cases their effects would mirror what their name meant.

I thought they would be a great deck to use.

However, when I had the urge to use them, they sort of gave me signals that bubbled at the back of my head they were searching for someone. Luckily, I was opening the booster pack during the time Kapono was around, and he had explained the details.

So you're Pathfinder!

Great!

Your superpower?

Being able to _attract_ strong monster cards... but were for other people and _not_ yourself.

Somewhere in my past life, maybe my best bud, Tessa, most likely was rolling her ass off laughing that this was my luck with pulling raffles tickets/luck based games turned into 'superhero power' form.

As selfless as that was, it's normal for me when I heard that, I had jumped to conclusions at the high possibility of being screwed by the time of the Fortune Cup.

Kapono claimed that he was twenty years old until he found all of his duel spirit monsters for his deck. For most of his life, he had been carrying the duel monster cards of others, for others. When I first heard that, I was devastated that it would severely cut my chances of survival against the Dark Signers. Yet, he quickly reassured me that it wouldn't be as much as a problem for me as I was a Chosen Pathfinder and I would most likely find my deck or duel monster spirits quicker. He noted it he was well aware that the Crimson Dragon's war cycle was going to take place in the coming years. Still, that was a good indication that I had to go out and be more proactive in meeting every archetype Duel Monsters could offer if I was going to survive with a deck that worked consistently well.

That meant I had to go to a Duel Academy if I was ever going to get that much exposure to as many archetypes as possible.

I grimaced at the thought.

If that was the case, how was I going to meet the other Signers sooner if I was stuck in school?

Internally, I had to stop myself from overthinking things. If there was a will, there was a way. There just had to be a way I could juggle both of them together somehow. _'But that's for later,'_ I kept reminding myself. Focus on the now… which meant I needed a good duel monster to give an awesome impression on my family that I was the second coming of Albert when it came to dueling. Honestly, without a boss monster, it was going to be problematic. At times like this, it sucked I didn't have Clear Wing Synchro Dragon with me. But a good duelist should be able to adapt with what resources they had. Hmm... I knew I had a good supply of defensive monsters and low-level ones, but that was pretty much it.

At first, it sounded depressing, it wasn't when I sifted through enough cards I found three copies of a particular monster.

At times like this, I was glad Albert was an organized boy when it came to organizing his cards, even if it was the pile he decided was for later use.

For the first time, I was shocked to feel I had the spirit's approval of all things coming from the back of my head.

I separated her three copies from the pile Albert's considered 'for later use' but then noticed how some support cards would now and then be a good match for the monster that approved of me.

I grinned evilly. With what I was building up and with some cards in my tin, maybe I could give Uncle Joshua for a run of his money.

.

.

* * *

 _ **At Dinner time…**_

By the time that everyone had their fill of food that was ordered through a restaurant and delivered to the recreation area, my family was mostly in high spirits of wanting to see duels being played. Grandma Margret being the judge and jury of the family tradition dueling event had sorted out who was against who. My match was not surprisingly, the last. That may seem like a long time for matches with 8000 LP, but I had to remind myself that this world stuck to 4000 LP no matter what. So most likely the matches were faster, considering it was going to be one match each. So far the line up was like this:

.

Grandpa Issac vs Uncle Fredrick

Dad vs Anthony

Russel vs Christine

Aunt Matilda vs Eugene

Albert vs Uncle Jacob

Me vs Uncle Joshua

.

The first match pretty much spelled out that grandfather and uncle shelled out a lot of cash to spare.

They both had customized Neo Domino City Duel Disks with their favorite colors plus customized decal. Regardless, it was what decks they owned that took the cake.

It was a crazy match with Grandpa's Monarchs versus Uncle Fredrick's Lightsworns. Also, when every time they pulled out their cards and played with them, I noticed the monster rarities were Ultra Rare at a minimum to a Secret Rare at best. That still didn't count the spell and trap cards that I recognized as part of Albert's section of 'highest rating/usefulness/meta cards of his monthly TCG magazine. Still, the number of combos and cancellations of great spell cards and traps cards in use was ridiculous. Jaw-dropping even for 4000 LP.

The fight was nearly evenly matched, but Grandpa barely scraped a win from Uncle Fredrick. By the end of that match, everyone was clapping at the great spectacle we got from that duel. Honestly, if the artwork for the two archetypes were amazing, seeing them in real holographic form blew my expectations away how magnificent they looked. Especially their boss monsters.

No wonder people were so addicted to this game!

Round two was Dad's Performapal Tribute deck versus Anthony's Warrior deck, with dad winning. Anthony's deck was okay when it came to monster synergy, but I think it lacked in traps cards. I wasn't really surprised with this matchup as my cousin wasn't really a meta player and focused on equipping spells.

Round three, Russel had won with his plant deck versus Christine with her fairy deck. His deck kind of reminded me of when Akiza during the 5D's era had made plant monsters trending in the TCG in the past. Christine's fairy deck that focused on LP gain didn't really have a chance. Not when Russel confided in my brother Albert of how good his deck build was and made a lot of fixes.

Round four, Aunt Matilda trumps my brother Eugene by using her Amazoness Deck versus Eugene's very generic dragon deck. Out of all of us, Eugene was mostly joining in for fun and hadn't really found any card he had liked. He wasn't really bothered by his loss at all, saying that while he wanted to be a better duelist, he just wanted to find the right cards for him first.

Round five, Albert's win was a surprise for me. Not only did he defeated Uncle Jacob's destruction deck, but he managed to summon _**Endymion The Master Magician**_ _**(2700/1700)**_ to his side of the field. It was nostalgic for me as it reminded me of a friend in the past who had the same aggressive build. Albert had gotten a lot of praises of his one-sided duel against my uncle.

Then, it was finally my turn to play for the first time on a duel disk. I was a little nervous at first, but once Dad gave me a pep talk, Albert wheeled my wheelchair to the duel area and wished me good luck, it was now or never. Everyone was encouraging me to give it my best shot as I was the youngest in my family, while Aunt Matilda loudly said I should kick my uncle in the rear and defeat him.

Grandma Margret gave the signal to start.

.

 **Aria:** **4000 LP**

 **Uncle Joshua: 4000 LP**

 **.**

"Duel!" my Uncle said, which I followed after him 10 seconds too late missing the timing completely.

 _Huh, I wonder if I'll ever get the whole 'in sync duel call out' right._

"Since this is your first time, you go first, kiddo," he welcomed me to go first.

I nodded as I drew five cards first, but then took out another one, "I draw!"

This felt weird, especially when in I was used to the rules that the first player who gets their first turn doesn't draw a card. I skimmed my cards as I hadn't drawn the main monster I needed to defeat my uncle yet. I may have practiced a few times with Albert how to use the duel disk before this match, but I just wasn't used to it yet. It's like trying to get used to the controls when you're playing a video game for the first time.

"I set a monster in defense mode," I said putting a card on my duel disk which shows up on the field as an unidentifiable card. I pulled another card and slotted a card under it. "Then, I play the spell _**'Poison of the Old Man'**_ ".

An old man in a purple cloak appeared in the trap/card area holding two vials of what looked like potions.

"I can choose to add 1200 Life Points for myself or damage 800 Life Points to my opponent. I choose 800 LP damage to my opponent."

I raised an astonished brow as the old man throws the purple vial at my uncle and my uncle blocks the incoming attack with his duel disk as if he was shielding himself from a hologram.

 **.**

 **Aria: 4000 LP**

 **Uncle Joshua: 4000 LP → 3200 LP**

 **.**

"Nice one, Aria!" Aunt Matilda cheered. So did my brothers and cousins.

Uncle Joshua sighed and rolled his eyes.

"Umm, I set three cards face down, and end my turn," I declared hesitantly hopefully making the right choice, leaving one remaining card in my hand. I kept reminding myself which trap cards I had in which slot.

"My turn! Draw!" Uncle Joshua said making a dramatic pull from his deck. "I summon the monster _**Sabersaurus (1900/500)**_!"

A tough pale red Triceratops took to the field, it was a vanilla monster with no card effects. A memory triggered in my mind; _was my uncle playing a dino deck?_ If I recall, this was one of Tyranno Kenzan/Hassleberry's monsters. While I didn't remember exactly what this deck had in terms of the members of the archetype, but I did remember it had a 3000 attack beat stick of a boss monster. I better watch out for it.

"Sabersaurs! Attack her face down monster!"

When my monster card flipped open, the Triceratops bangs its head to a human bulky large stone statue looking dizzy.

 _ **Stone of the Aztecs (300/2000)**_

"Because you attacked it, my monster effect is active," I pointed to my monster, "It doubles any damage my opponent takes when my monster is attacked."

 **.**

 **Aria:** **4000 LP**

 **Uncle Joshua: 3200LP → 3100LP → 3000 LP**

 **.**

This time, my uncle chuckled, "Not bad at all, Aria. But you can't keep defending all the time." He looked at his cards before he made his next move. "I put two reverse cards and then end my turn. Come on, Aria! Show me what you got!"

Internally, I had caught that he was trying to manipulate me into battling his monster. A normal 5-year-old may have fallen for it, but I was aware he was goading me to fall in the reverse cards he had prepared. I had a feeling there might be a _**'Magic Cylinder'**_ under there somewhere, that card was expensive in this world during this era, but my family consisted of people who could afford it without batting an eyelash. Even Uncle Fredrick and Grandpa Issac had that card in their decks. Too bad I was playing a defensive deck. Better luck next time, Uncle.

"I draw," I said taking a card out of my deck. Looking at it, I decided to put in on the field, "I set one face down. I end my turn."

He was looking at me curiously as he eyed my face down cards that I have not activated at all.

"Ho, your youngest is a mysterious one, Brian," he said to my father.

My father rolled his eyes at his older brother. "Just because she's five, you should underestimate her." He then turned to me, "Don't listen to what your uncle says. Just do what you want, Aria."

I nod at Dad in agreement before I shifted my attention to the duel again.

"Draw!" Uncle Joshua looked at his card and smirked. "I play the spell card **'Fossil Dig'** from my hand; it lets me add one level 6 or lower Dinosaur type monster from my deck to my hand! I choose the level 6 monster, _**'Dark Driceratops'**_!"

Looks like Uncle was going to go on the offensive.

And also, Dino deck confirmed.

"Next, I play another spell card from hand, _**'Big Evolution Pill'**_! I tribute _**Sabersaurus**_ , and in turn, as long as this card is on the field, I can Normal Summon Dinosaur monsters without tributing. On top of that, this card will stay on the field for the next 3 turns of my opponent!"

The triceratops disappeared from the field, rising up as a tribute.

"Thanks to **_'Big Evolution Pill'_** , I Normal Summon _**Dark Driceratops (2400/1500)**_ to the field!" An ugly looking bigger Triceratops takes the place the one that was Tributed. He then pointed to my monster again. "Go! Attack and destroy that statue!"

With the larger dino taking to the field, it rams _**Stone of the Aztecs**_ as it falls to pieces of bricks before disappearing to particles. I slightly wince as the hologram effects were intense and since I was in a wheelchair made me a stationary target and shielded my eyesight from the blast. I made a mental note I needed to get used to this. The thought that real damage would come when it came fighting the Dark Signers was enough to motivate me to start to 'git good' ASAP.

"Dark Driceratops effect is that it deals piercing damage to a defense monster!"

 **.**

 **Aria:** **4000 LP →** **3** **600LP**

 **Uncle Joshua: 3000 LP**

 **.**

"And that's for this turn," Uncle Joshua said, "Come on, Aria. You need to be able to fight too! You can't defend forever!"

His words screamed bait. _No, thank you._

"Draw!" I said taking another card from my Deck. It was a good draw, but not the monster that I needed. _Oh, well._ "I set a monster in defense mode. End my turn."

My Uncle sighed dramatically this time, "Well, I've warned ya, kid. Don't cry if you lose, okay?"

I said nothing.

"Humph, fine," Uncle Joshua sighed, "Draw! Here I go!"

This time I was alert and ready to activate my back row.

"I play the card, _**'Double Summon'**_ which lets me Normal Summon another time other than my first one in this turn! Since _**'Big Evolution Pill'**_ is active, I summon first _**Element Saurus (1500/1200)**_ and also _**Ultimate Tyranno (3000/2200)**_!"

A huge T-Rex and a fire-breathing raptor-like dinosaur made their appearance.

I heard murmurs that my brothers and even my relatives were worried for my sake with the number of monsters on the field, but I ignored them and focused on what would happen next. Honestly, my heart was hammering in my heart in adrenaline, but at the same time, I was kind of flattered to get the YGO protagonist treatment of fighting a monster with 3000 Attack Points in my debut duel. If I could defeat my uncle, the better.

"I activate **Element Saurus'** effect, as it's a fire monster, it gains 500 attack points."

Now on my uncle's field, there were three monsters, _**Element Saurus (**_ _ **20**_ _ **00/1200),**_ _ **Dark Driceratops (2400/1500)**_ and _**Ultimate Tyranno (3000/2200).**_

"Let's battle!" Uncle Joshua declared. "Ultimate Tyranno effect activates, as long as it's faced up on the field has to attack first! Go!"

I retaliated, "Reverse card open! _**'Mirror Force'**_ _!_ All monster attacks are turned back to yours, Uncle!"

"What?!" my uncle exclaimed, but pointed to his back row card quickly ordered, "Chain! I activate a Counter Trap _**'Seven Tools of the Bandit**_ **!'** " I pay 500 Life Points to negate _**Mirror Force**_!"

 **.**

 **Aria:** _**3**_ **600LP**

 **Uncle Joshua: 3000 LP → 2500 LP**

 **.**

My trap card was destroyed, but I wasn't giving up yet, "Chain! I open my trap card _**'Gravity Bind'**_! Level 4 and above monsters can't attack!"

A green safety net covers the field. Limiting all the monster with 4 stars from moving. _**Ultimate Tyranno (3000/2200)**_ stopped attacking.

Uncle Joshua this time was eyeing me slightly impressed as he had no cards in his hands, "… I guess that's all I can do for now. I end my turn."

This time I put my hand on my deck and hoped that the final missing monster was here. "Draw!"

I glanced at it.

It was _her._

"I summon _**Darklord Nurse Reficule (1400/600)**_!"

A mummified woman with four bat wings on her shoulders appeared on the field and waved at my uncle sweetly.

My uncle blinked confusedly, "That's supposed to defeat my monsters?"

In the background, I spotted that Grandpa, Uncle Fredrick, Uncle Jacob, Aunt Matilda, and Dad seemed to know what I had in store for my uncle.

I shook my head. "She can't beat your monsters, but I can help her defeat _you_."

"Huh?!"

"I open two of my face down cards, both are the traps _**'Gift Card'**_! One card makes my opponent gain 1500 Life points! So it's 3000 Life Points for you!"

He gaped what the hell I was doing, but I cut off his reaction.

" _BUT~_! Since _**Darklord Nurse Reficule**_ is on the field, her effect activates! Any way of gaining life points for my opponent is changed to _damage_ instead!" I smirked.

" _EHH_ _H_ _HH_?!"

My monster changed the envelopes to purple evil ones and then sent the Gift cards to Uncle Joshua's Life Points directly.

 **.**

 **Aria: 3600LP**

 **Uncle Joshua: 2500 LP → 0 LP**

 **.**

 **Winner: Aria**

 **.**

I was so into the duel that I was snapped out my tunnel vision of what was my match when I noticed that everyone around us clapped and cheered. My bothers had all came to my side and were congratulating me. Both Eugene and Russel hugged me before I switched my duel disk off. I inclined my head discreetly to my monster, thanking her for her help before she vanished gesturing to me to call her out anytime. I had a feeling I'd meet more duel monster spirits in the future.

In the background, I saw my other aunt and uncles laughing at Uncle Joshua that his 5-year-old niece defeated him in a duel. Uncle Jacob was kind enough to pat him on the back. Aunt Matilda was milking the moment for all it was worth since she explained to the unaware that _**Darklord Nurse Reficule** __was a_ part of decks that trolled opponents. She was right, as even in my past life, there were just players who like to see others squirm. My deck was nowhere near the consistent as it should be, it was missing great cards like _**Upstart Goblin**_ (which lets you draw and gives your opponent 1000 LP), but it was just one of those decks you would rather not face as LP gaining cards are turned against you.

My grandparents were off to the side with my father and Uncle Fredrick talking.

After the hype of the duel that night had died down an hour later, I was with my brothers enjoying ice cream that we took from the dessert table to some of the seats that were relatively quiet compared to the chatter and buzz of the hall.

Albert rubbed his hand on my head fondly, "That was a great match, Aria! I didn't think you'd try and make a defensive burn deck."

"Well, it's thanks to you and Dad helping and teaching me how to play," I said earnestly putting my empty cup aside. I then turned to my other brothers, "Plus, some of those cards were given to me by Russel and Eugene helped too."

Eugene was smirking with his arms behind his head. "I'm glad that Stone of the Aztecs would be good in dealing damage while you defended. At this rate, you could get into the Duel Academy where Albert goes to younger than him!"

I bristled at that. "Umm… I don't know, Eugene. I still want to play my violin better too, and Dad said the Hawaii Dueling Academy doesn't have the right music teachers there."

Russel nodded in understanding my dilemma. "That is a problem. But didn't Dad say that the best music school here doesn't have dueling classes in their school? If Aria has to go to either school then it'd be a shame to waste a talent whether it's dueling or playing the violin."

Albert looked thoughtful. He then gave us a questioning look, "I think she'll do great in both schools academically, but… Aria, some kids in prestigious schools are worse than in public schools. Even if my time in Hawaii Duel Academy is good so far, I do know they pick on the really weaker kids, and worse, if they have a disability. I'm lucky to be good at dueling, acing my classes, and part of the students who are in the top ranks, but if something like the time we went to your playgroup class two years ago happened, I'd rather not have you enroll where I go to school."

Not only my physical condition was making it difficult for me to go to school, but now my intelligence too.

I openly sighed at my brothers.

Russel patted my back in sympathy.

Eugene looked disturbed at what Albert had said. "What? You mean the bullies at your school get off the hook?"

"It's why I'd rather not have Aria go to school there," my eldest brother replied, "Those bullies you say are actually people with good dueling skills. Aria's school academic levels through homeschooling are high enough for her to skip a couple of grades. The older kids aren't going to accept her easily if she enrolled."

Russel shook his head, "Public school isn't going to help her either. Dad's private tutors are way better teachers. I'm still going to school there because I have friends."

At that last word, Eugene kicked Russel in the foot.

"Ow!" Russel yelps, but when Albert and Eugene give him a strict stare, he looks to the side, "Sorry."

"Eugene, Albert, it's okay," I said calming them down, "Russel didn't mean to. It's maybe better for me to stick to homeschooling, for now."

My three brothers were giving me the same concerned looks again. They were worried I didn't have close friends to call my own. They weren't aware of my friendship with Grandma Hokulani and Kapono. To them, friends meant people who were my age.

"What's with the cheerless mood all of a sudden?"

The four of us turned to the voice that belonged to Grandpa Issac.

"It's nothing, Grandpa Issac," Albert spoke up first.

My Grandpa didn't seem like he was buying it as he looked at all of us and none of us met his eyes but dropped the subject. "Let's get things back to being cheerful. It's Christmas after all. Come, you four, your Grandmother and your father have something you might be interested to hear."

At first, I wasn't sure what my grandmother had in store for me, but this was one of those instances where I had experienced that the Crimson Dragon was hard at work. When I was worried about walking forward, it would give me paths on where I could choose to walk on the path or not.

So what was this all about?

My grandmother was offering me a suggestion to seek my education in London. It wasn't just any school, it was called the Royal London Institute of Dueling, Arts, Research, and Technology or RLIDART for short. It was the place where the smartest and brightest went, and compared to my past, it was like a Massachusetts Institute of Technology but it was a place where Dueling was part of the curriculum. I didn't need to be afraid of not learning the things I wanted to pursue there as they were affiliated with the best universities in the country.

Now, since there wasn't an elementary school, it was Grandpa Issac that said that I'd enter at the age of secondary school instead. However, the classes were catered to whatever you excelled in and according to your level. So, it wasn't odd to see people who were still teens doing university-level research, contributing in art museums, and even might be the next candidates for a Nobel Prize. What I needed were an outstanding portfolio and achievement record… and it was Grandpa Issac who had started that by recording my duel with Uncle Albert.

My face was tomato red when he said he had sent it to one of the Duel teachers at RLIDART online via email and stated that they were interested if I was going to try and get in.

Dad didn't really like the part of me being far away to go to school at first, but when he heard the part I wouldn't go there until secondary school, he looked relieved. In fact, he seemed to think that if I kept my homeschooling grades up, maybe enter a few musical competitions and win in the process, I had a better chance to get in. I didn't have to be afraid of my disability since the school had facilities that took care of that and cared about getting the brightest youths to attend their school to achieve the best they could.

All in all, after I heard everything that was to offer, I gave Dad and my grandparents the okay that I would be working hard to get into that school.

What was my goal you ask?

I was going to do a Tony Stark aka Iron Man if possible.

You know, how he built his first circuit board at four, his first engine at six, graduated high-school at thirteen, and graduated _summa cum laude_ from MIT at 17? Yeah. That. I was given a chance with an adult mindset in this life, so it was probably for the best that I did what I could. I just need to focus on overall grades, extreme proficiency in music and dueling, also… something else? I still wasn't sure yet about something I wanted to do to change this world for the better with being a Chosen Pathfinder and all.

In my mind, I was still on a warpath against Z-One I was going to contribute something positive to humankind that people won't get so negative in the future and it'll lead the future to ruin.

Not on my watch.

At the same time, this went along with my plan that I'd keep an ear out on how to meet with the Signers from Kapono and hoped that the opportunity was there to meet them.

.

.

* * *

Another four years had passed and I was working up a storm with my studies and everything. I was nine years old.

For the most part, my brothers and Dad were exceedingly unhappy I was overworking myself.

I was paler in complexion than ever before, as I spent most of my time indoors either studying or I was stuck to a musical instrument, be it the violin or piano. I only came out of the house to go to the park for sports or relax once in a while. My studies? I was already in the last year of junior high school level and passed the examinations with mostly flying colors in the things I wanted to focus on.

What I didn't focus on I was mostly average on and I chose to not pursue them. Reason being, I had no plans on being a jack-of-all-trades.

Yup, I dropped art once the option was there. I do like art history, but I probably couldn't draw above average grade to save my life. Plus, it takes time, and I already was investing said time to improving my music skills.

Additionally, I had chosen electives that supported to what I think would further my music career, but on the side, I wanted to focus on mechanics too so I kept my grades as high as possible for science subjects as well. I was also hoping to learn all about Duel Runners if possible too. Not only because I'll need that skill set later, it was also because Albert who was now sixteen had decided he was going to be a Turbo Duelist and on his way to get his driver's license.

Now, this may sound stupid to some people, but… that summer holiday, I was grounded to _not_ touch _anything_ related to my studies.

Nope. I'm not joking at all.

I was such a workaholic that passing junior high at nine years old, ended up being _the_ _last straw_ for my brothers and Dad. They were adamant that I had to take a break for at least a month off of everything. That may have to do with the fact that for the last two summers, I used that vacation time to further skip grades. Thanks to that, Dad had literally _ordered_ my brothers that I was going to stay away from anything academic related and go and have fun. Just say, time flies by when you're preparing for something that might end the world to survive and try to get into an absurdly crazy school of geniuses at the same time.

The things that I was thankful for are that they let me fiddle with Duel Monster cards and let me play the violin or piano.

After finding _Darklord Nurse Reficule,_ there weren't any monsters that really resonated with me other than duel monster spirits who wanted to 'hitch a ride' with me. It was frustrating at times, but I used any deck in the meantime to duel and keep on getting experience. I wasn't sure about my win and loss ratio. However, since most of the time I dueled Dad, Albert, and Albert's friends who would come over to our house, I know I've at least lost fifty times. It wasn't heartbreaking or anything, it was just part of learning how to duel. I needed all the opponents so a loss wouldn't bother me as much and expose myself to many decks.

On the spiritual side of things, Kapono hasn't returned from his latest travel excursion around the globe in four months… and yet there was that peculiar same feeling I had when I was five.

That particular warm summer afternoon, I played the last violin piece that was promoting an animated movie that was based on Hawaii. I was invited to play a solo piece of one of their original soundtrack songs as I had won in 2nd place at nationals for a musical contest two months ago. The crowd consisted of people who were sponsors or had influential status from different nationalities on the movie. Playing in front of a crowd was already a norm at this point.

What I didn't know… was who I would meet soon.

After the concert ended the crowd dispersed for lunch. Sitting in my wheelchair, I was having some time to myself in an empty part of the auditorium lobby looking at some notices that held information on future competitions on a pin-up board. A bag hung behind my wheelchair that was filled up with my brother's decks and my tin if we grew bored and wanted to play after the concert. My brothers were off getting food and finding a place to eat at another side of the building which they mentioned had a cafeteria. As for Dad, he had his own show to take care of but said he'll pick us up later on.

"Hey!" a sound of a girl's voice came from behind me said, "Are you, Aria Hughes? The one who played the Song of the Sea?"

When I shifted my wheelchair towards the speaker, my eyes laid on a red-haired girl with a bob cut hair dressed in a pink casual dress who walked up shyly and was slightly younger than me holding a small bouquet of flowers.

"Yes, I am," I nodded, wondering what she wanted.

"These are for you!" She smiled widely until her teeth were showing. "I really loved how you played my favorite song from the movie! It was like my heart was right there! With all the characters!"

"Thank you," I accepted the flowers, and I scratched my neck nervously as I was embarrassed, "I just… make sure that my music would reach to everyone's heart. That's all, really."

She shook her head but was energetically positive, "I don't think so. I think you look like you were _singing_ with your violin! It was– it was like my heart was pulled out! And- and it was amazing!"

"I'm glad you enjoyed it," I smiled in return. The girl reminded me of myself when I first heard a genius violinist play and chose to learn the instrument myself. That first impression was one memory I cherished to this day. Even now, I was still pushing myself to be at the level of the person who first inspired me to start playing the violin.

"Umm…" the girl wavered a bit. She had her hands behind her and was shifting on her feet.

I blinked. "Yes?"

"I know we've just met, but, my dad and mom are busy in meeting with the stuffy suits..." she started as she shifted her brown eyes to a person that looked like an escort, "That's my driver over there. He's just keeping an eye out for me. Umm– the thing is– Can I be your friend?"

Huh? Where did this come from?

"Umm-! Please! I don't mean to be forward, but I– I don't really want to talk to the other kids. They make me nervous… they're too loud… We can eat and wait at the cafeteria somewhere quiet..."

Normally, I couldn't care less about making any sort of friendship with other kids since most would glance at my wheelchair and stay away from me. But this girl… just came up to me and asked to be her friend. For the first time in years, I never had someone else near my current age reach out to me. I had mixed feelings about where this was going. One side of me told me it wasn't worth it. However, another side of me longed for someone who I could call a friend.

"You're okay with me?" I asked her, "I'm–"

I had no words about my wheelchair. I detested the fact every time I had to say I was disabled, kids would keep their distance from me after. It wasn't a wonder I was nine and still friendless. _Talk about being lame..._

I gulped as I continued, "We might have to go around the long way. I– I can't go up the stairs since–"

"That's okay!" She interrupted looking at me, not giving up, "I think it's awesome you can play the violin so well! And we're going to the cafeteria together anyway, so I'll help you along the way."

My hands gripped over the wheels on my wheelchair, I was nervous. Should I accept or say no? My wheelchair shifted, and because of that, the bag behind my chair fell. Russel's cards tipped out, spilling a few of his plant monsters out. Blushing for that blunder, I apologized to her and tried to pick all the cards up by myself. Regardless, the girl was still there, picking up some of the cards that were too far for me to reach.

"Here you go," she said handing them over.

"Uh– thanks."

"Do you play Duel Monsters?" the girl asked.

"I do. These are my brother's cards, though," I shrugged, putting the cards carefully in before zipping the bag.

"That's great! I play it too!" She jumped happily. The girl then suggested, "We can play together then! I don't have someone to play with..." She then hesitated at my silence. "If– If that's okay with you."

Stubborn, brave, and patient, even knowing that I was going to hinder her to walk or play freely. Now that was a rare trait in a kid. Maybe for once... I should give her the benefit of the doubt.

I breathed out a breath I never thought I was holding in.

"Okay. We can go to the cafeteria together," I gave her an uncertain smile.

" _Yatta_!" She whooped putting her fist up oblivious that I was still unsure about all of this.

I stopped her in her tracks and pointed out, "Still, if we're going to be friends, I need to get to know your name."

She stopped her triumph pose, and quickly apologized, "Oh! I'm sorry! I forgot! I was just so excited and–!" She made hand expressions that conveyed her happiness but didn't say anything more as she didn't seem to find the right words.

The positivity was contagious.

I giggled at her sincere reaction, "It's okay." I took out my hand for a handshake, "Let's start over then. I'm Aria Hughes, nice to meet you."

She took my hand and shook it. Her hand was warm, a far cry from the hand that slapped and rejected me those many years ago. She beamed at me, radiating kindness.

"Glad to meet you, Aria! I'm your new friend, Akiza Izayoi!"

.

.

* * *

 _ **To Be Continued...**_

.

 ** _And so we meet, 'mini' Aki._**

.

 _ **Au Note:** **#CrimsonDragonHasBeenBusyYetAgain #avoidsPitchForksAgain XD**_

Also, Aria's first (troll) duel! xD This took a lot longer to write than I thought it would. I know most fics that have main OCs have 'family' that's usually untouched on, but I wanted the protagonist to have roots in this world, despite feeling left out when her origins are anything but that. They'll make appearances, but I promise they'll move the plot forwards when they're needed. They won't over-welcome their stay.

 **Duel Note:** LP gain/damage cards are shifted to take into account of anime 4000 LP. Gift Card originally adds 3000 LP. I'm just cutting it half to make ensure it's fair. Unless it's not overbearing, like Poison of the Old Man that's about 800 LP damage or 1200 LP increase.

 **My official lore on Pathfinders:** they have a hard time finding their intended deck/monster because they're "hitch hiked" by other duel monster spirit cards. I mean... just look what happened to the Ishtar family in DM. XD

As usual, I'm all ears to decks/archetypes being used by Aria, although, I have some wild ideas for the main characters too...

 **Questions to my readers:** If characters such as Yusei, Jack, Lua, Luca, Aki were to use another deck/tech in an engine/tech archtypes that in the current meta that would still suit their dragons, what would they be? Let me know! XD

Crow doesn't count since his BlackWings in Arc-V are crazy strong. :P

Thanks for reading! Don't hesitate to drop a review, favorite, follow, and have an amazing day!


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